The International Day of Older Persons is celebrated every year on 1st October. This day is celebrated to highlights the plight of older persons and makes the world aware of their contributions and achievements in the overall development of society. Check everything related to International Day of Older Persons here.
History
The UN General Assembly declared October 1 as the International Day Of Older Persons(resolution 45/106) on 14th December 1990. The General Assembly took the UN Principles for Older Persons (resolution 46/91) in the year 1991. In 2002, the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing was adopted by the Second World Assembly on Ageing.
Between the years 1950 and 2010, the world population took a turn. The life expectancy of the people rose from 46 to 68 years. In 2019, globally there were more than 700 million people aged 65 or above. Eastern and South-Eastern Asia had the largest numbers, followed by Europe and North America. The population of older persons is expected to get more than double in the next three decades reaching above 1.5 billion by 2050.
Significance
International Day Of Older Persons highlights the plight of older persons and makes the world aware of their contributions and achievements in the overall development of society. The World Health Organization organizes various events and conferences in order to honour the older generation and provide necessary steps that one can do to ensure their safety.
These days, we witness a lot many cases of abuse and abandonment of old people globally. International Day of Older Persons (IDOP) makes sure that this issue is addressed and people are made aware of the worth of older persons.
The older generation deserves respect and attention. They are the foundation of our society and it is high time we realize that and let the younger generation know their worth.
In India, the government will organize Vayo Naman Programme at the Plenary Hall, New Delhi on October 1, to honour the senior citizens of the country. The Vice President of India will be the chief guest and honour the older persons with the Vayosheshtra Samman Awards.
International Day Of Older Persons Theme
This year’s theme is “Digital Equity For All Ages”. As the theme suggests, it focuses on the participation and access of older persons in the digital world.
According to recent reports by International Telecommunications Union(ITU), women and older persons suffer from digital inequity as compared to others as a result of either not having access to the internet or not being able to avail themselves the opportunities completely.
Although digitalization has also raised concerns regarding the privacy and security of a person’s identity with cybercrimes and scams on the rise, digital equity continues to be an issue, especially for the old.
This year’s theme is an attempt to overcome the same and ensure that older persons are able to benefit as much as they can digitally.
Objectives of UNIDOP 2021
- Including older persons in the digital world and bringing awareness of the same while taking care of discrimination against the same.
- Achieve sustainable development goals by announcing various policies related to digitalization.
- To address interests like design, affordability, connectivity, infrastructure.
- To take care of the privacy and security of the older persons in the digital world.
Things To Do On International Day Of Older Persons
There are so many things you can indulge in on this special day, beginning right with your family. If you live in a family with older persons, you can dedicate your day to them. You can make them smile even from the slightest of things, like chat with them or cook for them, give them flowers or help them out in their daily chores, there are a plethora of things.
Apart from this, you can visit older people in NGOs or old age homes and talk to them and be a good listener. Sometimes all it takes to make your day better is someone to talk to and you can do the same by just visiting them.
