United Nations International Day of Older Persons 2022

The International Day of Older Persons aims to create awareness about aging population and availability of proper healthcare and social services.

Highlights:

Every year the International Day of Older Persons in 2022 is celebrated on October 1 to make people more conscious of the effects of an ageing population
The resilience of older persons in a changing world is the theme of United Nations International Day of Older Persons in 2022

The International Day of Older Persons was declared by the UN General Assembly on December 14, 1990.

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‘On December 14, 1990, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution designating October 1 as the International Day of Older Persons, which is observed every year.’

Theme for 2022: Resilience of Older Persons in a Changing World

The resilience of Older Persons in a Changing World is the overarching topic for the United Nations International Day of Older Persons in 2022. The NGO Committees on Aging in New York, Geneva and Vienna will each commemorate this theme in their own and complementary ways.

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Existing disparities have been made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has intensified during the past three years the effects on older people's lives- particularly older women, who make up most older people- of socioeconomic, environmental, health and climate-related factors.

While older women continue to make a significant contribution to their political, civil, economic, social, and cultural lives, their efforts are still mostly unseen and ignored due to gendered disadvantages that have accrued throughout their lifetimes. Negative stereotypes that mix ageism and sexism are exacerbated by the interaction between discrimination based on gender and age.

The International Day of Older Persons (UNIDOP) topic for 2022 acts as a marker and a reminder of the crucial role older women play in navigating global difficulties and making valuable contributions to their solutions with fortitude and tenacity.

UNIDOP 2022 is a call to action and an opportunity to embrace the voices of older women and showcase their resilience and contributions to society while promoting policy dialogues to enhance the protection of older people. Recognizing the vital contributions of older women and promoting the inclusion of their voices, perspectives, and needs is critical to creating meaningful policies to enhance a holistic response to local, national, and global challenges and catastrophes.

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Goals for #UNIDOP2022

1. To demonstrate the tenacity of elder women in the face of a persistent lifetime, of social, economic, and environmental injustices.
2. To increase public awareness of the significance of better global data gathering that is broken down by age and gender.
3. To demand that all policies put older women at the forefront and ensure gender equality among member states, UN organisations, UN Women and civil society.

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History of The International Day of Older Persons

The United Nations Principles for Older Persons were approved by the General Assembly in 1991. The Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing was adopted in 2002 by the Second World Assembly on Ageing to address the opportunities and challenges presented by the population’s ageing in the 21st century and to advance the creation of a society that is inclusive of people of all ages.

The number of elderly people is expected to more than double over the next three decades, reaching more than 1.5 billion people in 2050. Between 2019 and 2050, the senior population will grow across the board. Eastern and South-Eastern Asia are expected to experience the highest rise (312 million), going from 261 million in 2019 to 573 million in 2050. Northern Africa and Western Asia are predicted to see the fastest increases in the number of elderly people, from 29 million in 2019 to 96 million in 2050. (an increase of 226%).

Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to have the second-fastest increase, with the number of people 65 and older rising from 32 million in 2019 to 101 million in 2050. (218%). In contrast, the growth is anticipated to be considerably less in Australia and New Zealand (84%), as well as in Northern America and Europe (48%), where the population is already considerably older than in other regions of the world.

More than two-thirds of the world's elderly population (1.1 billion) will live in less developed countries, excluding the least developed countries, in 2050. However, the least developed nations are expected to have the highest growth, with the number of people 65 and older possibly increasing by 225% from 37 million in 2019 to 120 million in 2050.

Source-Medindia