International Longevity Centre Global Alliance - Designing the Future of Ageing

16 April 2019

Silvia Perel-Levin, chair of the NGO Committee on Ageing, Geneva and Representative of the International Longevity Center Global Alliance, led the morning briefing for NGOs with the presenter, Bridget Sleap, the senior rights policy advisor for HelpAge International on 16th April 2019. Briefing took place in the United Nations headquarters in New York.

The morning briefing was intended to serve as a way to help prepare participating  NGOs for the session in the UN assembly later that  day, including  presentation of oral statements. It also included the recap and analysis of proceedings in the previous day.

Ms. Sleap led a discussion that successfully analyzed two of the four topics covered in the tenth session of the OEWG: social protection and lifelong learning for older persons. She explained the arguments that member states used the previous day in opposing a convention on the human rights of older persons, and assisted assembled NGOs in how to successfully counter these/their? points. Ms. Sleap stressed that the human rights for older persons shouldn’t be just about “surviving”, but rather about providing them with the tools with which they can live a full life. She also stated that even highly developed countries still have room for improvement, and thus a convention is necessary to provide the required guidelines for such changes to actually occur.

During the Q&A session a lively exchange of opinions took place. Participants raised various questions and comments on issues such as “the availability of best practices” and “barriers for older persons to have a full life”. Ms. Perel-Levin closed the session, thanking the speaker and the audience for a very informative and meaningful discussion.

Written by S.K. Hartley, volunteer for International Longevity Center Global Alliance

Photo: From the left, Ms. Sleap, Ms. Perel-Levin, and participants.