Is successful ageing possible?

A famous Chinese proverb says: "An elderly person at home is like a living golden treasure." This proverb deserves to be interpreted in connection with the fact that our world is in a process of ageing rapidly. People aged 60 and older make up 12.3 per cent of the current 7.5 billion global population. In accordance with the United Nations (UN) assessment, by 2050 more than 20 per cent of the world's population will be 60 years of age or older, and the increase in the number of older people will be the greatest and the most rapid in the developing world. Asia will be the continent with the largest number of older persons.

Beyond these predictions, scholars believe that something unprecedented is going to happen: more and more centenarians are coming. Indeed, even if we limit the examples to the USA, it appears that the number of Americans aged 100 and older has gone up by 44 percent since 2000.There were 72,197 centenarians in 2014, compared with 50,281 in 2000, while in 1980, they numbered no more than 15,000.

Specialists in demography seem highly impressed by this remarkable evolution. However, at the UN level it is realistically recognized that in many parts of the world awareness of the ageing phenomenon remains limited or non-existent. Experts are permanently warning that even developed countries are unprepared to successfully cope with this phenomenon, especially as the life expectancy of senior people continues to rise.

Ageing is not a problem, but an achievement. The revolutionary demographic challenge of the current century, in both developed and developing countries, demands that concerted and strong efforts be made for putting ageing policies at the top of the social agenda during the irreversible process of globalization. All people in all countries from every sector of society, individually and collectively, are invited to join in a universal dedication to a shared vision of equality for persons of all ages.

The World Health Organization (WHO) adopted relevant recommendations for enabling the rapidly growing number of older persons in both developed and developing countries to remain in good health and maintain their many vital contributions to the well-being of their families, communities and societies. But the WHO cannot deny that many health systems are not sufficiently prepared to respond to the needs of ageing population, including the need for preventative, curative, palliative and specialized care. In addition, the situation of older persons in many parts of the world has been negatively affected by the world financial and economic crisis.

What is to be done?

Year by year the UN invites its 193 Member States to continue to share their positive national experiences in developing and implementing policies and programs aimed at strengthening the promotion and protection of the human rights of older persons.

Governments are encouraged to actively address issues affecting older persons and to ensure that the social integration of senior citizens and the promotion and protection of their rights form an integral part of sustainable development policies at all levels.

The key challenge confronting our globalizing world is "building a society for all ages." All countries are requested to overcome obstacles to the implementation of the UN Madrid Plan of Action on Ageing (the most important document in this field, adopted by consensus in 2002) by devising strategies that take into account the entirety of the human life course and foster inter-generational solidarity in order to increase the likelihood of greater success in the years ahead.

It is also frequently recommended to advance a positive public image of older persons and their multiple contributions to their families, communities and societies. Appropriate measures are necessary for changing negative stereotypes about senior citizens.

More specifically, appropriate reference is being made in UN documents to the crucial importance of inter-generational family interdependence, solidarity and reciprocity for social development and the realization of all human rights for older persons in order to prevent age discrimination and provide full social integration of senior citizens. In this context, it is emphasized that more opportunities have to be created for voluntary, constructive and regular interaction between young people and older generations in the family, the workplace and society at large. More attention has to be paid to the psychological and physical aspects of ageing and the special needs of older women.

A significant task highlighted in many international documents is to adequately address the issue of the well-being and health care of older persons, as well as any cases of neglect, abuse and violence against senior citizens, by implementing more effective prevention strategies and stronger laws and by developing coherent and comprehensive policy frameworks to solve these problems.

There is no surprise that in complementing national development efforts, promoting an enhanced international cooperation is described as being essential to support developing countries in implementing the Madrid Plan of Action.

In this regard, the UN resolutions remind on a regular basis that the world community of nations is expected to support national efforts to forge stronger partnerships with civil society, including organizations of older persons, academia, research foundations, community-based organizations, including caregivers, as well as the private sector, in an effort to help build a stronger capacity on ageing issues.

In more specific terms, governments are invited to support the UN Trust Fund for Ageing meant to provide expanded assistance to developing countries upon their request.

Legitimate expectations

Due consideration has to be given to the situation of older persons in the post-2015 development agenda and to the expectations related to it.

In this respect, while not dealing concretely with the problems of ageing, the document entitled Transforming Our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by the UN Summit on September 25, 2015, advocates for creating an enabling environment at all levels for sustainable development in the spirit of global partnership and solidarity and requests Member States to take all necessary measures for promoting social protection and equal access to quality essential public services for all. This transformational agenda offers a historic opportunity to advance the rights and role of older persons in society as an integral part of the ambitious commitment to "leave no one behind."

At the same time, it should be reminded that the validity and topicality of the United Nations Principles for Older Persons (1991) for future action must not be ignored or underestimated. The last two principles proclaimed in this document stipulate that older persons should be able to live in dignity and security and be free of exploitation and physical or mental abuse. They should be treated fairly regardless of age, gender, racial or ethnic background, disability or other status, and be valued independently of their economic contribution.

It is often said that old age combines happiness and sadness, with less time wasted on anger and worry. Is it a real success?

While there is no generally accepted definition of successful ageing, it can be assumed that a person is deemed to have successfully aged if he or she lived free of disability or disease, had high cognitive and physical abilities, and was interacting with other people in meaningful ways..

In practical terms "successful ageing" can be interpreted as a prolongation of middle age. Chinese wisdom advises: "Do not be afraid of being old; only be afraid when your spirit becomes old."

In an optimistic way, Martin Buxbaum (1912-1991), an American poet and editor, asserted: "Some people, no matter how old they get, never lose their beauty - they merely move it from their faces into their hearts."

In an even more optimistic manner Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), a great American poet, wrote: "We turn not older with years, but newer every day."

Ana Aslan, a famous Romanian gerontologist (1897-1988) once said: "To grow old in a beautiful and dignified way is at the same time a science and an art."

Finally, in the opinion of French writer Andre Maurois (1885-1967), "The art of growing old is the art of being regarded by the oncoming generations as a support and not as a stumbling-block."

All these relevant quotations from the past deserve to be interpreted today in the light of the most recent international documents and statements on ageing. In this respect, mention should be made of the written statement submitted by the International Federation of Associations of the Elderly, a non-governmental organization in consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council, at the 54th session of the UN Commission for Social Development. This document says inter alia: "Older persons must be able to secure and take on their share of responsibility for contributing to a properly run society, advancing the well-being of a country's inhabitants of all generations, and increasing its wealth. It is therefore necessary to promote active aging, facilitate benevolent activity, remove barriers associated with age, combat discriminatory practices against the elderly (ageism), guarantee a decent income, safeguard resources saved for retirement, and ensure a full range of retirement options."

It can be concluded that giving tangibility to legitimate demands and expectations like those reproduced above may, indeed, contribute to successful ageing for 12.3 per cent of the current 7.5 billion world's population. Therefore, 2016, as the first year covered by the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, can be considered as a promising and testing turning point in the calendar of global efforts for the implementation of this Agenda. Successful materialization of the goals proclaimed in this programmatic document is an important precondition for reaching genuine progress in making successful ageing a persuasive reality. Otherwise, this humanistic objective will remain just a noble aspiration.