Blogs

Addressing ageing and food security in Africa

As the recent G8 Nutrition Summit shows, governments and NGOs have often overlooked the nutrition needs and food security of older people. The event, held on 8 June, brought together global leaders from diverse fields, including science, politics and...

Ageing and healthy environments

Earlier this week, I attended the "Ageing and Healthy Environments" International Federation on Ageing (IFA) workshop in Cameroon. The event focused on health and wellbeing into old age, elder abuse and age-friendly environments. The two day workshop had

Restoring older people’s sight in Sudan

Since 2003, HelpAge International has supported older people and their families in Darfur by providing access to free medical services and eye care. As part of our recent Age Demands Action on Health activities, HelpAge organised several eye camps...

Poverty and wellbeing for older Mozambicans: scratching the surface

On 15 May, at Indy Village in Maputo, 250 researchers, academics, government officers, civil society actors, journalists and older people gathered at the invitation of the Institute for Economic and Social Research (IESE) and HelpAge International to disc

Growing debt crisis among urban Syrian refugees in Jordan

HelpAge International and Handicap International are working together to ensure Syrian refugees living in Jordan receive the essential assistance they need to survive, and to do so with dignity. One of the key challenges facing many Syrian refugees in...

Growing old on the rock: Ageing in Jamaica

Last week, I had the pleasure of appearing on the Live at 7 show on CMTV in Jamaica (fast forward to 11 minutes in) for a special feature on our ageing population and how we deal with it. The...

Uprating social protection benefits: an example from Bolivia

The question of how social transfers should be indexed over time is a hot topic for social protection practitioners. A recent case from Bolivia reveals some of the issues at stake. Last week, on 1st May, Bolivia’s president Evo...

Older people main victims of recent Argentina floods

Silvia Gascon is the Director of the Gerontology programme at Isalud University, Argentina. She is also a member of the HelpAge International Board. On 2 April, an extremely violent storm hit the city of La Plata, just outside the...

Human rights are the rights of all!

On a cold and windy Madrid day, we gathered at the Ministry of Social Services to discuss the importance and necessity of implementing a new UN convention on the rights of older people. Attendees came from various countries and...

Age Demands Action on Health in Serbia

We marked World Health Day in Serbia by using the slogan “Are you under pressure? Arterial hypertension; from prevention to rehabilitation“. Serbia is part of a group of countries where the risk of hypertension is above the European average...