Second World Assembly on Ageing
At the end of 1999, important initiatives were set in train to advance progress in international ageing policies. At its 54th General Assembly the United Nations resolved to take a new look at the International Action Plan on Ageing adopted almost 20 years ago and adapt this to today’s world. This Plan incorporates central ageing policy areas and provides the basis for recommendations to national governments. In April 2002 the Second World Assembly on Ageing met in Madrid to undertake a thorough revision of the International Plan of Action on Ageing. The document which was subsequently adopted contains global objectives in addressing the challenges of demographic change. In so doing, the varying needs and interests of 189 member states were brought together and the need for a forward-looking strategy underlined. The International Action Plan on Ageing strives in particular to alert the public to the issues involved in the global ageing of society and to include an international approach in the search for solutions.
An important international document of this kind is by its very nature relatively abstract. The global statements it contains automatically require that the views of all 189 member states be equally reflected. Thus individual national statements cannot be expected from the Plan, which is designed to alert broad sectors of the public to the question of global ageing and tackle the challenges posed by demographic change across national borders.
The Madrid Plan 2002
On the last day of the conference, a new International Plan of Action was adopted following intensive text negotiations. This Madrid Plan contains 117 paragraphs and is divided into the three sections "Introduction", "Recommendations" and "Implementation". After the introduction, there follows a comprehensive catalogue of recommendations under three main headings entitled "Older Persons and Development", "Advancing Health and Well-Being into Old Age" and "Ensuring Enabling and Supportive Environments". Under these three headings are sub-grouped central themes in the form of Issues, Objectives and Actions. The new Plan of Action on Ageing focuses both on political priorities such as improvement in living conditions of older persons, combating poverty, social inclusion, individual self-fulfilment, human rights and gender equality, but also to an increasing degree on such holistic and overarching themes as intergenerational solidarity, employment, social security, health and well-being, as well as the interchange between government and civil society. The document concludes with proposals for a sustainable implementation of its objectives, which includes the role of research and national and international requirements. The document as a whole has a holistic approach and also takes up the UN concept of "Building a Society for all Ages" as one of its central themes. Major conferences such as the Population Conference in Cairo, the Social Development Conference in Copenhagen and the Beijing Women's Conference and their follow-ups are also reflected in the text. Particular attention was given to the situation in developing countries, where the process of demographic change often occurs at an extraordinarily rapid pace. Because of the sometimes less favourable conditions prevailing in the countries affected, the changes in population structure can require swift reaction. In the Political Declaration accompanying the Plan, the United Nations have once more summarised the main areas of emphasis and incorporated these in the form of a moral undertaking for member countries.
