Database of good practices on ageing

Australian retirees reaching statutory pension age, who now receive pension support based on assessed income levels to ensure fair access.

This change streamlined eligibility, improving transparency and equity in pension access. Nearly 80% of age‑eligible Australians now receive some form of age pension, with 50% receiving the full rate—a high take-up compared to other countries.

The income test is managed by Services Australia to ensure fair pension access based on declared and verified income. It is implemented through automated assessments, online tools (like MyGov), and regular income reporting. Thresholds are periodically updated, and the system integrates with tax and employment data for accuracy and efficiency.

The reform provides a transparent, needs-based pension framework that ensures broad coverage while preserving sustainability—delivering fairness and social protection effectively.

• https://pensionresearchcouncil.wharton.upenn.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Chapter-14.pdf

Older men and women in Türkiye

This guide gathers all relevant services and rights into one document, making it easier for older persons to understand what is available and how to access it.

Older persons requiring long-termcare. 

Assessments and partner reporting show:

• Improved quality of life and functional ability
• Reduced caregiver burden on families
• Increased autonomy and dignity among older persons
• Strengthened community solidarity

These outcomes have been highlighted by both development partners and government stakeholders as a viable long‑term care model for Armenia

Developed by the Armenian Red Cross in collaboration with Swiss Red Cross society

Instead of institutionalisation, the programme provides integrated medico‑social home care, allowing older persons to remain in their homes as long as possible — a strong preference identified in Armenia through baseline studies. Beyond care provision, the programme actively promotes active and healthy ageing,

Supporting Armenia’s Growing Older Population: Swiss Delegation Visits Shirak Region

Older persons in rural areas/villages in Bhutan

Data collected from this model enabled the creation of a national Digital Health Database for seniors. Through the health checks, it was found that around 20% of seniors living rurally needed immediate interventions for cataracts or mobility issues. These interventions would have gone unnoticed without the ICBSP model.

his model was developed as a response to the country's demographic shift. The wellbeing of Bhutanese elderly was usually viewed through the Gross National Happiness philosophy. This is the first standardized medical model that brings geriatric care into the primary care system.

This model adopts the WHO model of Integrated Care for Older People, but adapts it for rural settings by making the screening mobile rather than hospital-based.

Older persons requiring long-term care

The initiative has significantly improved access to social and basic health services for vulnerable older people in Kyrgyzstan, particularly those living alone or with limited mobility. By 2017, the model had reached approximately 400 vulnerable older people, supported by around 200 trained community volunteers, delivering home‑based social care, household assistance, and health‑related support in coordination with state social workers. Importantly, 100% of older persons with low mobility who requested support received assistive equipment, enabling greater independence and social participation.

The community‑based care initiative for older people in Kyrgyzstan was developed incrementally, in response to growing social care gaps and limited institutional capacity. In the mid‑2010s, the Red Crescent Society of Kyrgyzstan (RCSK) identified increasing isolation, poverty, and unmet care needs among older persons, particularly those living alone or with limited mobility, through its routine social assistance and health outreach work. Drawing on IFRC community‑based home care standards and lessons from volunteer‑led health and social programmes, RCSK piloted a model that combined home‑based support, trained community volunteers, and coordination with state social workers, ensuring complementarity with public social services rather than duplication.

The practice is cost‑effective, scalable, and aligned with the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing and the UN Decade of Healthy Ageing, making it a transferable example for countries with limited long‑term care infrastructure.

Integrated home Based Care in Kyrgyzstan | Else Kröner-Fresenius-Stiftung

Older persons requiring long-term care and their families

Long-term care insurance increased access to formal care services and reduced public health expenditure. 

It was developed because public healthcare expenditure became unsustainable because of the lack of long-term care insurance. 

Before LTCI, long‑term care was split among welfare programs and health insurance, leading to inefficiencies and over‑medicalization of care. The introduction of LTCI integrated social welfare and medical care systems and rationalized service delivery. This reduced inappropriate hospital use and provided a clearer care pathway for older persons. It also provides a model of learning from failure and reforming unsustainable systems. 

Long-term care in Japan

Key beneficiaries are all age groups requiring care, such as older persons, children and persons with disabilities. 

The model has strengthened community cohesion and mutual support, creating a “family-like” environment across generations and reducing social isolation. Beyond individual benefits, Kotoen has become an internationally recognized good practice, influencing similar intergenerational care models in Japan and abroad and demonstrating how integrated, community-based services can respond effectively to ageing societies. 

Originally established in 1962 as a traditional nursing home, the organization expanded its services over time to include childcare and other forms of social support. In the late 1970s and 1980s, as both demand for eldercare and childcare increased, Kotoen began integrating these services, culminating in the introduction of its pioneering intergenerational model in 1987, which brought older persons and children together within a single facility.

The intergenerational approach makes it a recognized good practice. 

Singaporean seniors aged 50+ participated alongside youth learners—typically students from primary to tertiary institutions—fostering mutual learning and social bonding.

The programme has engaged over 6,000 seniors and youths since its inception in 2011 up to 2015, enhancing seniors’ digital and creative skills, boosting their social and mental well-being, and nurturing empathy and intergenerational solidarity among young participants.

Launched in April 2011 by C3A under the National Silver Academy, the ILP matches seniors with youth “teachers” in group learning settings at schools and community venues.

By facilitating structured, reciprocal learning between seniors and youths, the ILP strengthens social cohesion, promotes lifelong learning, and reinforces intergenerational respect—offering a scalable model for inclusive community engagement.

• https://mobile.nsa.org.sg/articles/ageing-well-help-young

These community clubs benefit older adults, especially women and socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals, alongside the broader community—offering peer support, care, and inclusive activities.

By 2020, the programme significantly enhanced older people’s access to community care, financial services, and social protection. It strengthened local solidarity through microcredit, home care, policy outreach, and community-driven fundraising—demonstrating a sustainable and inclusive model for ageing support.

Developed by HelpAge Vietnam with support from HelpAge Korea and KOICA under project code VIE70, the model was delivered through local self-governed, volunteer-led clubs, supported by simple membership dues and community-generated funding. Clubs operated bottom-up, with intergenerational participation and volunteer support.

ISHCs exemplify locally owned, cost-efficient, and scalable care models, enabling older adults to lead community-led solutions that foster resilience, social inclusion, and intergenerational solidarity.

• https://www.urbanagendaplatform.org/best-practice/hanois-intergenerational-self-help-clubs
• https://ahwin.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Innovation-for-an-aging-Asia_web.pdf 

Poor families in Uzbekistan

It is a programme developed using the existing mahalla system. District/City Councils of People’s Deputies will regularly hear reports on implementation challenges identified by elders. The 2025 State Budget allocates 504 billion soums to the Nuroniy Foundation for programme implementation.

The practices considers older persons as agents and not recipients of care. It capitalizes on experience of older persons and respect to them. It also builds on existing social capital and existing structures through the mahallas. It also provides systematic recognition to older persons who provide their expertise through financial compensations. Thus, it also provides income security for older persons and incentives to support the programme. 

Elderly community leaders to join poverty reduction efforts in Uzbekistan – News from Uzbekistan – Gazeta