Assurances that the policies and actions of the Cyprus Government, which aim at social integration, healthy aging, inclusion and quality support and care services, in order to further improve the quality of life of the elderly, were given by state officials on Friday at the European Political Conference on Active, Healthy and Dignified Ageing, in Nicosia.
Deputy Minister of Social Welfare, Marilena Evangelou, announced for the first time that her Deputy Ministry, taking into account the needs and challenges, especially in terms of long-term care, the cost of living, but also the cost of food of nursing homes for the elderly, was working on a specialised long-term care subsidy scheme.
Referring to the recent approval by the Council of Ministers of the preparation of a National Strategy and a National Action Plan for active aging, she said that they have already started looking into good practices both in Cyprus and internationally, and into policies that could be implemented if adapted to the conditions of Cyprus.
In his greeting, Interior Minister, Constantinos Ioannou, said that the changing demographic developments require Governments to adapt to modern conditions, with the aim of meeting the needs of all groups of the population and eliminating the gap between generations.
He said that his Ministry “guided by its own mission to promote sustainable development”, contributes to the formation of age-friendly cities through development plans, adding that, through an integrated framework of spatial and urban planning, third age people can enjoy a quality and dignified way of life, “carrying out their daily activities with comfort, independence and safety, as active cells of society”.
In her speech, the Minister of Justice and Public Order, Anna Koukkides-Procopiou, said that “it is proven that the aging of the population is one of the most important social and economic challenges of the 21st century”.
Referring to Cyprus, she said that according to demographic statistics of 2019, people aged 65 and over made up 16.3% of the total population, with constantly increasing trends, while it was estimated that the life expectancy was 84.7 years for women and 80.3 for men.
The Minister said that both State and society, ought to collectively and, with coordination, continue and intensify efforts to ensure and promote the human rights of the elderly, “as a minimum token of appreciation and recognition” of their contribution to society.
Health Minister, Popi Kanaris, in her speech, read by a Ministry official, said that improvements were being made continuously for the healthcare of citizens and especially of the vulnerable groups of the population, including the elderly, such as the recent operation of new emergency departments within the national heath scheme, the inclusion of podiatrists in the health system and the extension of the on-call hours of GPs during weekends and public holidays.
She added that the Health Ministry has drawn up the National Strategy for the health of the elderly, which will be included in the National Strategy of the Deputy Ministry of Welfare under the pillar of health.
For her part, the Commissioner for Administration and the Protection of Human Rights, Maria Stylianou-Lottides, said that elderly people were often being discriminated against in various sectors such as the quality of health services provided, access to work, goods and services, information, transportation, access to required new technologies.
“When we therefore talk about aging with dignity, from the point of view of the protection of human rights, we should focus on the design and implementation of policies, which will on the one hand, combat stereotypes and discrimination against older people, in a way that promote their active participation in all aspects of life, and on the other hand, ensure their dignity and health by protecting them from abuse, neglect or reduced care”, she said.
Associate Professor in Nursing at the Cyprus University of Technology, Dr Evridiki Papastavrou referred to dementia, which, she said, was considered a natural consequence of the increase in life expectancy and affects 42% of people over the age of 85. She added that in Cyprus it was estimated that there are around 10,000 people with dementia, but that there were not relevant epidemiological studies or accurate records being carried out, noting that this was a number that was expected to double by 2050.
She noted that according to the WHO, dementia should be made a public health priority.
The President of the Third Age Observatory, Demos Antoniou, said that “as society continues to evolve and the demographics shift towards an aging population, it becomes vital to immediately address the alarming phenomenon of elder abuse”.
Antoniou said that the cooperation and the joining of forces between the social agencies and the State would create the foundations, in which respect and empathy will determine how elderly people were being treated.
The Honorary President of the Cyprus Patient Associations Federation, Marios Kouloumas, said in his own intervention that the elderly face enormous barriers as regards accessing safe health services.
The Conference addressed also Greek MEP Elissavet Vozemberg-Vrionidi and the President of the Cyprus Union of Municipalities, Andreas Vyras.
The European Political Conference, on the subject of Active, Healthy and Dignified Ageing, that was organised by the Third Age Observatory, in cooperation with the Office of the European Parliament in Cyprus, took place at the Presidentail Palace in Nicosia.
