International Day of Older Persons: History, significance and all you need to know

With an aim to raise awareness on the impact of an aging population, every year 1 October is marked as the International Day of Older Persons.

In a bid to ensure the need that people can grow old with dignity, the day aims to elevate consciousness about points that are affecting the aged population, including senescence and elder abuse. There is no denying the fact that older people make a huge contribution to society.

Whether it is through their guidance, transmitting experience and knowledge, or volunteer work, the contribution made by them can’t be paid back, and therefore they surely deserve a day that celebrates them. Hence, the International Day of Older Persons not only honours but also respects the contribution of older people to building society.

History

From helping their families with caring responsibilities to nurturing the young generations, society has benefited from them in many ways. In its resolution 45/106, the United Nations General Assembly on 14 December 1990 designated 1 October as the International Day of Older Persons.

This after the World Assembly on aging adopted the initiatives like the Vienna International Plan of Action on aging by 1982 and later that year was also endorsed by the UN General Assembly.

However in 1991, in its resolution 46/91, the General Assembly adopted the United Nations Principles for Older Persons. As a response to the opportunities and challenges of population aging in the 21st century, the Second World Assembly on Aging in 2002 adopted the Madrid International Plan of Action on aging. This was also done in a bid to promote the development of a society for all ages.

Significance

This special day for older people holds immense importance as it highlights the challenges of aging, including health issues and elder abuse. The International Day of Older Persons also aims to highlight the contributions of the elderly population to our society. Every year the day is celebrated under different themes, which highlights the important aspect of the day. This year, the day is celebrated under the theme of Resilience of Older Persons in a Changing World.

Last year, the day was celebrated under the theme Digital Equity for All Ages, which stressed the need for elder people to be active in the digital world. According to the United Nations, the elderly population in the least developed nations are, for the most part, not getting proper access to the digital world.

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