PURPOSE: The United Nations General Assembly designated 1 October as the International Day of Older Persons by the (resolution 45/106). Among development groups, less developed countries excluding the least developed countries will be home to more than two-thirds of the world’s older population (1.1 billion) in 2050. Yet the fastest increase is projected to take place in the least developed countries, where the number of persons aged 65 or over could rise from 37 million in 2019 to 120 million in 2050 (225%).
FORUM: “Older Persons Driving Local and Global Action: Our Aspirations, Our Well-Being and Our Rights.” International Day of Older Persons 2025. The 2025 observancce will serve as a platform for older persons to share aspirations, advocate for their well-being, and call for the full enjoyment of their human rights. This year’s commemoration focuses on recognizing and supporting the transformative role that older persons play in driving action at both local and global levels, drawing on their expertise in health equity, financial well-being, community resilience, and human rights advocacy. The Political Declaration and the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA), adopted at the Second World Assembly on Ageing in 2002, remain the cornerstone of international efforts to promote the well-being and human rights of older persons. The Declaration articulates the global commitment to building a society for all ages, while MIPAA translates that vision into action through its three priority directions: older persons and development; advancing health and well-being into old age; and ensuring enabling and supportive environments. This year’s theme, “Older Persons Driving Local and Global Action: Our Aspirations, Our Well-Being and Our Rights”, echoes these principles by highlighting the agency and contributions of older persons in building resilient and equitable societies. This momentum is also reflected in recent international developments. In April 2025, eighty-one Member States in the Human Rights Council cosponsored the adoption, by consensus, of resolution 58/13, “Open-ended intergovernmental working group for the elaboration of a legally binding instrument on the promotion and protection of the human rights of older persons.” This landmark step was supported by many members of the national human rights institutions and nongovernmental organizations. The Working Group, once established, will contribute significantly to “the objective of promoting, protecting and ensuring the full enjoyment of the human rights by older persons.” In line with MIPAA’s call to mainstream ageing into development agendas, today’s demographic shifts demand renewed policy attention. The world’s population is not only growing older at an unprecedented pace and scale. The number of people aged 60 years or over has more than doubled, from around 541 million in 1995 to 1.2 billion in 2025, and is projected to reach 2.1 billion by 2050. This transformation is most pronounced in developing countries, which will account for the majority of older persons within the next 30 years. Global life expectancy has reached 73.5 years in 2025, an increase of 8.6 years since 1995. The number of persons aged 80 years or over is growing even faster and is projected to surpass the number of infants by the mid2030s. These demographic shifts demonstrate that older persons represent a significant and growing segment of society, whose equal recognition and integration into policy and legislative planning are essential. Considering the far-reaching implications that population ageing trends will have on the social, economic, and environmental dimensions of development, achieving social development in an ageing world requires policy choices that incorporate age-responsive strategies, inclusive economic opportunities, equitable access to healthcare and social protection, and the empowerment of older persons to participate fully in all aspects of society without discrimination, grounded in the United Nations Principles for Older Persons. Equally essential is the full realization of the human rights for older persons, which are essential to ensure their dignity and well-being in an ageing world. In this context, the 2025 United Nations International Day of Older Persons aims to elevate the voices of older persons as experts, advocates, and change-makers, ensuring their perspectives remain central to policies, programmes, and legislation at the national, regional, and international levels across all sectors. By drawing on the insights and lived experiences of leaders from diverse regions, the event will underscore the essential role of older persons in building resilient and equitable societies. Follow the conversations with hashtags. #1October, #ForEveryAge #idop2025, #OlderPersonsDay, #HealthyAgeing.
EVENTS: The International Day of Older Persons 2025 High-Level Event in New York is sponsored by The Permanent Mission of Argentina to the United Nations. Organized by the NGO Committee on Ageing in New York and the United Nations DESA Programme on Ageing, the event will include a keynote address followed by a moderated, interactive panel discussion. The 2025 commemoration aims to:
• Raise awareness of the evolving demographic landscape and the rights of older persons by highlighting the significant growth of the global population aged 60 and over, particularly in developing regions. This awareness is essential to recognizing older persons as key contributors to economic and social development and to support the design of innovative policy solutions that respond to the challenges and opportunities presented by rapid population ageing, ensuring that no one is left behind.
• Promote inclusive social and economic opportunities for older persons by showcasing initiatives that enable their full participation in society. Highlighting these initiatives helps to focus efforts on creating equitable pathways for older persons to engage in community life, access education and employment, and benefit from sustainable social protection systems that uphold their dignity, rights, and aspirations.
• Advance discussions on the human rights of older persons and the elimination of discrimination by drawing on experiences from diverse regions. These reflections should highlight how age-related discrimination may be compounded by other forms of inequality, and emphasize the need to strengthen legal frameworks and accountability mechanisms that protect the rights of older persons in all aspects of life.
• Encourage multi-stakeholder collaboration to foster supportive environments for older persons, highlighting the roles of families, communities, and institutions. Such collaboration, bringing together Governments, civil society, the private sector, and older persons themselves, is essential to building age-inclusive societies, with a focus on intergenerational solidarity and community-based approaches that enhance resilience and empower older persons to lead fulfilling lives.
The 2025 United Nations International Day of Older Persons aims to elevate the voices of older persons as experts, advocates, and change-makers, ensuring their perspectives remain central to policies, programmes, and legislation at the national, regional, and international levels across all sectors. Co-organized by the Permanent Mission of Argentina, the NGO Committee on Ageing and the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA). For further information, please contact ageing@un.org. Related Documents: Event Site & Concept Note; Register to participate, Get the agenda programme and Watch 35th UN International Day of Older Persons Celebration!
Geneva, UNHQ - At Palais des Nations. Room XXIII, 15:00 – 16:30. An Hybrid event event will be hosted by the UNECE, NGO Committee on Ageing Geneva, the Permanent missions, the World Psychiatric Association (WPA), World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH), the International Federation on Ageing (IFA), the International Psychogeriatric Association, the Global Alliance for the rights of Older person (GAROP), the International Longevity Centre (ILC) to analyze recent developments and explore actions for all stakeholders to further the human rights of older persons. It will serve as a forum for discussing collaborative strategies to promoting and protecting these rights.
PUBLICATIONS: Unlocking the Power of Older Persons as Partners in Localizing SDG Delivery. The UNDESA in collaboration with an inter-agency taskforce of UN entities and other relevant stakeholders issues a compilation of policy briefs providing evidence-based recommendations for SDG localization. This policy brief was prepared by HelpAge and UNDESA with input from United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), UN-Habitat, UN ECA and UN ECLAC, and consultation with the Local 2030 Coalition. The Political Declaration and the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA), adopted in 2002, remain cornerstones of global ageing policy, promoting a society for all ages through action on development, health, and supportive environments. The 2030 Agenda directly reflects these principles and calls upon Member States to empower all stakeholders to support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. This policy brief argues that enabling and ensuring the full participation of older persons as key partners in realizing the SDGs, helps national and subnational governments achieve equitable progress for all. They can bring direct lived experience, knowledge, and insight, making them essential stakeholders for advancing the SDGs, while ensuring that their priorities and needs are addressed. The policy brief provides concrete recommendation to overcome barriers to their participation and to bring their voices and experience to transform SDG delivery. Read the full policy brief!
The Resolution A/RES/80/179 underscores the need to integrate ageing issues into the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, strengthen intergenerational solidarity, and recognize older persons as active contributors to sustainable development and social cohesion rather than passive recipients of care. The General Assembly calls on Member States to adopt age-inclusive, rights-based and gender-responsive policies that combat ageism, expand social protection and pension coverage, ensure access to healthcare and long-term care, close digital divides, and promote the full, effective and meaningful participation of older persons in all spheres of life. It emphasizes improved data collection and disaggregation, stronger institutional frameworks, and inclusive policymaking involving older persons themselves. The resolution also stresses the importance of international cooperation, capacity-building and adequate financing to support national implementation of the Madrid Plan of Action, while reaffirming the central role of the Commission for Social Development and the UN system in monitoring progress and advancing the human rights of older persons. Read the full Follow-up to the Second World Assembly on Ageing: Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on December 18th, 2025.
The Ageing and Older Persons: Key International Resources – 2025 brings together the latest reports, policy briefs, data tools, training materials, and advocacy resources produced by international organizations and leading civil society networks during the year. This curated collection prepared by the UNECE Population Unit highlights new evidence, strategic guidance, and practical resources to support policy development, programme design, and awareness-raising on ageing and demographic change. Covering themes such as healthy ageing, ageism, demographic change, the human rights of older persons, labour market inclusion, lifelong learning, social protection, care systems, and intergenerational solidarity, the overview aims to serve as a quick reference for policymakers, practitioners, and advocates. It includes materials from United Nations agencies, international organizations, regional bodies, and non-governmental organizations, with links to full texts and multimedia resources. Read the full report!
PODCASTS: The Decade of Healthy Ageing (2021-2030) is an opportunity to bring together governments, civil society, international agencies, professionals, academia, the media, and the private sector for ten years of concerted, catalytic and collaborative action Listen to the audio-podcasts!
CAMPAIGN MATERIALS: it’s time to Improve the lives of older people, their families, and the communities in which they live. Get the communication materials!
WHY WE CEBRATE THE DAY?
HOW TO GET INVOLVED?
The Objectives of the International Day of Older Persons are :
To highlight the resilience of older women in the face of socioeconomic, environmental, health and lifelong inequities.
To raise awareness of the importance of improving world-wide age- and gender-sensitive data collection and analysis in order to provide essential evidence for effective policies.
To call on Member States, United Nations Funds, Programmes, Specialized Agencies and other United Nations entities, as well as civil society to include older women in the center of all policies, ensuring gender equality, as described in Our Common Agenda; which represents the Secretary-General's vision on the future of global cooperation.
Consider the life expectancy and improve the living conditions of ageing population
Spend time and Give attention to Older persons
Raise awareness of the importance of digital inclusion of older persons, while tackling stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination associated with digitalization, taking into account sociocultural norms and the right to autonomy.
Highlight policies to leverage digital technologies for full achievement of the sustainable development goals (SDGs).
Address public and private interests, in the areas of availability, connectivity, design, affordability, capacity building, infrastructure, and innovation.
Explore the role of policies and legal frameworks to ensure privacy and safety of older persons in the digital world.
Highlight the need for a legally binding instrument on the rights of older persons and an intersectional person-centered human rights approach for a society for all ages
PARTNERSHIPS
The International Day of Older Persons is hosted by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the United Nations Enable, The Elders, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the World Health Organization (WHO), the U.N. Women…
With the participation of International and Regional Institutions, the Civil Society Organizations, Non-Governmental Organizations, Researchers and Academics.