Advancing equality for older people

What does equality really mean?

Equality is about ensuring all people, regardless of race, gender, age and physical ability, have access to the same rights, the same opportunities and are treated equally. It’s one of the most important cornerstones of democracy.

To be discriminated against is to have your access to equality denied or curtailed.

Age discrimination denies older people’s right to equality

Currently, older people are routinely denied equality. This is most obvious when it comes to accessing effective medical care or social protection, but it also extends to employment: many, many older people would like to work but are discriminated against when applying for jobs.

International law requires governments to eliminate all forms of discrimination, including discrimination based on age.

But unlike sex, gender or race, age discrimination isn’t specifically listed in human rights instruments. As a result, age discrimination is rife and largely unchallenged; laws and policies differ from county to country and offer varying levels of protection and effectiveness.

What needs to change?

‘Advancing equality for older people’, our new report, calls for two key legal shifts to end age discrimination:

Internationally – Older people’s rights must be formally recognised in a UN convention.
Nationally – Governments must adopt comprehensive anti-discrimination laws that prohibit all discrimination, including age discrimination.

One in six of us will be aged 65 or older by 2050. Age discrimination will affect every single one of us so let’s work to end it, shall we?

Age discrimination

More countries need to agree to a convention. Ensure your country is signed up!

Equal rights for older people

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 50% of people worldwide are ageist. That’s a scary fact when you realise that by 2050 one in six of us will be aged 65 or over. Securing equality for older people is in everyone’s interest because every single one of us is getting older.

Read our new report now!

Our report examines and compares the legal frameworks for prohibiting age discrimination in 12 countries from across the world, analysing them for consistency with international legal standards. We identify the gaps, inconsistencies and barriers which prevent older people from realising their rights while highlighting good practices and promising developments. The 12 focus countries are Argentina (Spanish), Finland, India, Jordan (Arabic), Kenya, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan (Russian), Paraguay (Spanish), Philippines, Serbia, Tanzania and the United Kingdom.

What you can do

Advocate for change now! Civil society is key to securing the change we want to see. We've put together an advocacy toolkit to help you secure action in your countries and regions.