Global Issues: Ageing
Introduction
The population of the planet is aging. Almost every nation in the globe is seeing an increase in the number and percentage of elderly people in its population.
With implications for almost all facets of society, including the labor and financial markets, the demand for goods and services like housing, transportation, and social protection, as well as family structures and intergenerational ties, population ageing is poised to become one of the most significant social transformations of the twenty-first century.
Older people are increasingly viewed as development contributors, whose capacity to act for their own and their societies' betterment should be integrated into policies and programs at all levels. Regarding public health care, pensions, and social protections for an aging population, many nations are anticipated to experience fiscal and political difficulties in the ensuing decades.
Population Aging Trends
More people above the age of 65 are being born worldwide than people under 65.
One in six persons worldwide will be over 65 by 2050 (16%), up from one in eleven (9%), according to data from World Population Prospects: the 2019 Revision. In Europe and North America, one in four people could be 65 or older by 2050. For the first time ever in 2018, adults 65 and older outnumbered youngsters under five around the world. According to projections, the number of people 80 or older will quadruple from 143 million in 2019 to 426 million in 2050.
Age-related population demographics
Three demographic processes, including migration, mortality, and fertility, work together to produce a population's size and age distribution.
Since 1950, life expectancy has significantly increased across the board. Improvements in surviving at older ages make for a rising share of the overall improvement in lifespan as the life expectancy at birth rises.
Global population ageing is mostly caused by decreased fertility and rising longevity, although migration from outside has also changed the age composition of the population in various nations and regions. International migration can reduce the aging process in nations that have high levels of immigration since most migrants are still young enough to be working. But immigrants who stay in the nation eventually become part of the senior population.
Conferences on Ageing
The General Assembly called the first World Assembly on Ageing in 1982 to start addressing these challenges, and it resulted in the 62-point Vienna International Plan of Action on Ageing. It demanded concrete action on matters like family, social welfare, financial security and employment, education, and the gathering and analysis of research data. It also asked for action on topics like housing and the environment.
The United Nations Principles for Older Persons, which list 18 entitlements for older people in the areas of independence, participation, care, self-fulfillment, and dignity, were endorsed by the General Assembly in 1991. The International Conference on Aging gathered the next year to follow up on the Plan of Action and adopted a Proclamation on Aging. The UN General Assembly proclaimed 1999 the International Year of Older Persons on the advice of the Conference. Every year on October 1st, people around the world honor older people.
In 2002, when the Second World Assembly on Ageing was held in Madrid, advocacy on behalf of the elderly continued. It adopted a Political Declaration and the Madrid Worldwide Plan of Action on Aging in an effort to create 21st-century international ageing policy. In order to realize the great potential of ageing in the twenty-first century, the Plan of Action called for changes in attitudes, policies, and practices at all levels. The development of older people, improving health and well-being into old age, and creating enabling and supporting surroundings are given emphasis in its particular suggestions for action.
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