In November 1983, five organisations – Help the Aged UK, Help India, HelpAge Kenya, Help the Aged Canada and Pro-Vida Colombia – set up the HelpAge International network to continue this work and provide a stronger basis for supporting older people worldwide.

Some of HelpAge International’s key achievements over the past 25 years include:

1993 – HelpAge Kenya carried out the first participatory research with older people to make sure their experience was properly understood.

1999 – HelpAge International published guidelines on how to respond to older people in emergencies, based on research and experience

2002 – HelpAge International arranged consultations with older people in 32 countries. These helped to shape the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing – a marked improvement on the Vienna plan, committing governments to include ageing in all social and economic development policies. HelpAge International arranged for older people and their representatives to speak at the World NGO Forum on Ageing.

2002 – Partner organisations in five countries launch the first older citizen’s monitoring project, in which groups of older people learnt about their entitlement to social protection schemes such as social pensions and lobbied the authorities for improvements.

2007 – Older people’s organisations in 27 countries worldwide took part in Age Demands Action, the first global coordinated campaign in which older people presented their issues to governments and secured concrete commitments for change. In 2008, the campaign grew even bigger, with 40 countries taking part worldwide.