Welcome to the United Nations
The side event on the margins of the 11th Open-ended Working Group on Ageing (OEWG11) was co-hosted by the Permanent Mission of Chile to the United Nations, Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations, Permanent Mission of El Salvador to the United Nations, World Health Organization (WHO) and UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).
The session focused on the Decade of Healthy Ageing 2021 -2030 which was proclaimed on 14 December 2020 by the United Nations General Assembly. The Decade adheres to the guiding principles of Agenda 2030 and those in the global strategy and the Global Campaign to Combat Ageism. It is based on the human rights approach, which addresses the universality, inalienability and indivisibility of the human rights to which everyone is entitled, without distinction of any kind.
To foster healthy ageing and improve the lives of older people and their families and communities, fundamental shifts will be required not only in the actions we take but in how we think about age and ageing. The Decade addresses four areas for action:
- Change how we think, feel and act towards age and ageing;
- Ensure that communities foster the abilities of older people;
- Deliver person-centred integrated care and primary health services responsive to older people;
- Provide access to long-term care for older people who need it.
This session discussed the vision and principles of the Decade and offered insights in the four action areas and their close link to the human rights, as well as their applicability to specific country settings.
The implementation process by the different stakeholders was considered, focusing on the challenges, good practices and ways to measure the success, including the need for strengthened data, research and innovation to accelerate implementation and reach the objectives identified within the four areas of action.
Through the informative and engaging discussions during the event, it was emphasized that the UN Decade of Healthy Ageing sends a clear signal that it is only by working together, within the United Nations system and with governments, civil society, the private sector, academics and older people, that we will be able to improve the lives of older people their families and communities.
It was also stressed that actions taken under the Decademust be based on the human rights approach, which addresses the universality, inalienability and indivisibility of the human rights to which everyone is entitled, without distinction of any kind, including the rights to enjoyment of the highest attainable standards of physical and mental health; an adequate standard of living; education; freedom from exploitation, violence and abuse; living in the community; and participation in public, political and cultural life.
As the speakers noted, the Decade creates the urgency that is needed to meet the needs and rights of older persons and generate transformative change.
The session started with a pre recorded video of the First Lady of Chile, H.E. Cecilia Morel, who highlighted the work made by Chile in the implementation of the Decade, including the promulgation of the “Law of positive ageing” align with the decade principles.
Representative from UN DESA emphasized that The UN Decade of Healthy Ageing received strong political support here in New York because it builds on and compliments Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing, it will help ensure older people are not left behind in the last Decade of the Sustainable development goals, and it can help address the many gaps that the current pandemic has revealed not just in the things we do but in how we think about ageing and older people. In this regard a first Global report was released earlier this month on ageism developed by WHO, OHCHR, UNFPA and DESA.
The Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights noted that the Sustainable Development Goals constitute an invaluable opportunity to increase the visibility of older persons and to highlight inequalities in old age. Whereas the Sustainable Development Goals have been a catalyst for improving general data collection around the world, countries still lag behind in producing data on older persons and lack systematic disaggregated analysis that is necessary for monitoring the implementation of the Goals. She urged states to continue or to start to collect age disaggregated data in order to bring about policies which can benefit people based on their age, in particular older persons. The Independent Expert also noted that a key area for achieving a principled approach to a human rights based approach is to ensure the participation of older persons in the decision making processes in areas which affect them including in health care and support, palliative care and long term care.
The panel discussed country experiences in the planning and challenges of the implementation of the Decade. Representative from Japan illustrated that with more than a quarter of its population over 65, Japan has largest proportion of older people in the world. This proportion is expected to rise to one third within twenty years, and to 40% by 2060. As the representative emphasized, the fact that Japan is facing such tremendous population aging is itself a result of the success of its social security system, particularly the medical care and long-term care systems. Japan had already achieved Universal Health Coverage as of 1961, and established long-term care system twenty years ago. The government is also aiming to realize science-based long-term care by utilizing the assessment data that is regularly collected from people using long-term care, with the aim of supporting independence and preventing severe disease. However, the representative noted that looking at the history of economic development, it is clear that as the economies grow and as the average incomes per capita increase, so too will the life expectancies, and fertility rates will decline. Everyone will be facing an aging population sooner or later. The experience of Japan today will have very useful implications to make adequate policies to prepare for an aging population in the future.
The representative from the Geriatric Institute of Chile shared experience and challenges foreseen in the implementation of the Decade, among those, to maintain a good quality of life for older people until their last day of the life. To do so it is important to integrate medical, functional, psychological and social aspects to achieve the best action plans tailored to each patient. As the representative noted, COVID-19 has portrayed that the lack of professionals specializing in care for older persons do to geographical limitations has left many older people more vulnerable. There are new methods of accessibility being explored in Chile, including telemedicine and improved data collection.
The representative of El Salvador stressed that it s often the chronological age that determines the dependence or independence of the people. The COVID-19 pandemic is having a devastating impact across the world with a disproportionate risk of mortality, infection, poverty, discrimination and isolation for older persons. She emphasized that the Decade is an opportunity to achieve the Agenda 2030 by focusing on evidence-based actions, while strengthening the focus on equity and leaving no older people behind. The four areas of action for the Decade represent areas where many sectors will have to collaborate to improve healthy ageing, including health, finance, education labor, housing, information and communication. The representative also informed the participants that since January El Salvador has a special law protecting the rights of older persons. The country is also developing an action plan 2021-2024 to strengthen the actions in favor of older persons.
The discussion with participants stressed the importance of what is at the core of the Decade – to change how we think feel and act towards age and ageing as an important foundation, as well as the need for a strong political leadership in implementing these changes. It was also emphasized that education, intergenerational contacts and policies work towards eliminating ageism and discriminatory attitudes.