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Title: The Ageing Caribbean: 20 Year of the Madrid Plan of Action

Citation Type: Miscellaneous

Publication Year: 2022

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Abstract: Population ageing has been a major and growing concern1 among policymakers over the last two decades since the adoption of the 2002 Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA). This report reviews the actions taken by Caribbean countries and territories2 to address the issue over the last five years and, more generally, over the twenty years since the adoption of the MIPAA. With the pace of demographic change continuing to accelerate over the next decade and the number of older persons continuing to increase in all Caribbean countries, further and more far-reaching actions will be required to realise the plan’s vision of a “society for all ages” and to take advantage of the opportunities that ageing presents. Ageing is a long-term demographic trend affecting virtually all countries of the world although the process is more advanced in some countries than others. In the Caribbean and Latin America, populations have a relatively young age structure compared to those in North America and Europe. In 2021, the old age dependency ratio (65+/(15–64))3 was 14 for the Caribbean,4 compared to 12 for Latin America, 26 for North America and 30 for Europe. In the Caribbean (as in Latin America), the pace of demographic change is accelerating. The old age dependency ratio for the Caribbean increased from 10 in 2000, to 14 in 2020 and will increase to 20 by 2030 and 28 by 2045. Between 2020 and 2045, the number of persons aged 65 and over in the Caribbean will double while the size of the working age population (aged 15 to 64) will remain roughly unchanged. Population ageing is relatively more advanced in Barbados and many of the associate member countries including Curaçao, Martinique and the United States Virgin Islands, while it is less advanced in Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, Grenada, Guyana, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Suriname. However, all Caribbean countries will see their significant increases in their old age dependency ratios over the coming two decades and beyond. Ageing is a consequence of the demographic transition from the high fertility, high mortality societies of the past to the low fertility, low mortality societies of the modern world. Along with increased life expectancy, the completion of this demographic transition also lowers population growth and leads, ultimately, to a more stable population structure. Demographic ageing should therefore be seen in a positive light and as a fundamental part of the development process. The increasing number of older persons and their longevity present both new challenges and opportunities for societies and for policymakers. Challenges include increasing pension and healthcare costs, the greater need for long-term care services, and the increasing number of persons suffering from non-communicable diseases. There is also increasing recognition of the contribution that older persons can (and do) make to economic, social, cultural, and political life and the opportunity this presents. Fully realising this contribution will depend on stronger protection for the rights of older persons, including protection against age discrimination, social exclusion, isolation and elder abuse. To take one example, the proportion of persons aged over 65 in Bermuda is projected to increase from 16.9 per cent in 2016 to 24.9 per cent in 2026. Pension and health care costs are increasing while Bermuda’s workforce is in decline. The Minister of Finance described this as “perhaps the single most serious long-term issue Bermuda faces” (Royal Gazette, 2020). The international community’s priorities and objectives for addressing these challenges were set out in the MIPAA, adopted at the Second World Assembly on Ageing in 2002. The Madrid Plan identified three broad priority directions: older persons and development; advancing health and well-being; and ensuring enabling and supportive environments. It defined 18 priority issues, with 35 objectives and 239 recommendations for action. Since 2002, there have also been a series of five-yearly reviews which produced the following regional agreements: the Brasilia Declaration (2007), the San José Charter on the Rights of Older Persons in Latin America and the Caribbean (2012) and the Asunción Declaration (2017). These agreements reiterated member States’ commitment to the Madrid Plan and incorporated actions to advance its implementation in the region, address emerging issues and, in some cases, expanded upon the commitments contained in the MIPAA. The San José Charter on the Rights of Older Persons was the most significant of these regional agreements, emphasising the rights-based approach and actions designed to increase protection for the rights of older persons. The twenty-year review and evaluation of the MIPAA (the fourth five-year review) is taking place between 2021 and 2023. The regional review will be held in December 2022, within the framework of the fifth meeting of the Regional Intergovernmental Conference on Ageing and the Rights of Older Persons in Latin America and the Caribbean, at which member States will present national progress reports or statements. The regional conference will be held in Santiago, Chile between 13 and 15 December 2022. The global review will take place in 2023 within the framework of the 61st session of the United Nations Commission for Social Development. This report provides an assessment of progress in the implementation of the MIPAA in the Caribbean and is intended to contribute to the regional review process which will, in turn, provide input to the global review. It considers the situation of older persons in the Caribbean subregion, reviews the policies and programmes implemented for older persons, and assesses the progress made by member and associate member countries in the implementation of the MIPAA and subsequent regional agreements. The report draws on national and international statistics, information collected about government policies, programmes and services for older persons and interviews with representatives of civil society organisations. The three main chapters of the report broadly correspond to the three priority directions of the MIPAA: older persons and development; health and well-being; and enabling and supportive environments.

Url: https://www.cepal.org/sites/default/files/events/files/mipaa20_subregional_review_rev2.pdf

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Data Collections: IPUMS International

Topics: Aging and Retirement

Countries: Puerto Rico, Saint Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago