Brussels, 05/04/2002 (Agence Europe) - United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan and Spanish Prime Minister José Maria Zanar are to open the second World Assembly on Ageing in Madrid, on 8 April. The watchword of the assembly will be a "Society for all ages". The assembly will come to an end on 12 April with the adoption of an action plan comprising medium and long-term common strategies to face up to the problem of an ageing population in the world. It will also issue a political declaration. According to United Nations forecasts, 21% of the world population will be over 60 years of age in 2050, which means that there will be around 2 billion old people in the world (three times more than at present).
The president of the EU Council on Employment, Juan Carlos Aparicio, gave his assurance at a press conference that the European Union would maintain a common position throughout the Assembly, without losing sight of the aim of defending the viability and the sustainability of pensions, as well as the aim of improving health assistance.
Delegations from 160 countries, including six Heads of State and Government, are expected at the Madrid conference.
Speaking at the conference, Forza Italian member Mario Mantovani affirmed the validity of the United Nations principles in favour of the elderly and old, principles proclaimed by the UN Assembly General on December 1991, which are essentially: independence, participation, right of access to healthcare, and personal dignity. Discussion in greater detail must now be held on these principles and, above all, concrete actions must be launched, stresses the MEP. In his view, it is not enough to speak of Article 13 of the EU Treaty against discrimination or Article 25 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, and it is now necessary to launch strong and coordinated action at European level against the common challenge that demographic ageing represents for all Member States.