The policy discourse of active ageing: Some reflections

The active ageing framework moves policy thinking away from a one-sided concern with the affordability of age-related entitlements and the challenges posed by the increasing burden of a continually expanding older population. The wider platform of active ageing strategies emphasises that government policies designed to achieve participation in both paid employment and social engagement will act as social investments. These policies will help to prevent the loss of valuable expertise and the accumulated experience of older people. They will strengthen the human and structural resilience of ageing societies, and enable them to deal more effectively with the longer-term economic and societal challenges of population change. This paper discusses the policy discourse of active ageing, using the active ageing index as a tool.