The world is ageing

• Ageing is a triumph of our times – a result of improved public health, sanitation and development. Yet 184 million older people live in poverty
• Currently, 11% of the world’s population is over 60. This will double to 22% by 2050
• By 2050, people aged 60 and over worldwide will outnumber children under 14
• By 2050, nearly one in five people in developing countries will be over 60

• Globally, life expectancy is 68. Those who are currently 60, however, can expect to live to 78, if male, and 81, if female.

Most of the world's older people live in developing countries

• 497 million older men and women live in poor countries – nearly two-thirds of the world’s total older population
• By 2050, 80% of the world’s older population will live in developing countries
• Three quarters of the world’s older population live in areas affected by natural disasters and conflict
• Two-thirds of the world’s older people who have chronic illnesses (such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease) live in developing countries.

Many older people in developing countries live in poverty

• Poverty rates in households with older people are up to 29% higher than in households without
• In developing countries more than 50% of men and women continue to work past the age of 60, the overwhelming majority in the informal sector
• Fewer than one in five people over 60 worldwide receive a pension in some cases it is fewer than one in ten. 

Older women outnumber older men

• By 2015, there will be 89 men over 60 for every 100 women over 60 in developing countries. By 2030, there will be 86 men for every 100 women.
• Older women are more likely than men to be widowed. Older widows are among the poorest and most vulnerable groups in developing countries.

Older people care for people with HIV/AIDS and orphans

• In many African countries, older people are the main carers of more than 40% of people living with HIV and AIDS and children who have been orphaned by AIDS.