Database of good practices on ageing

The primary beneficiaries were Thai citizens aged 60 and above, especially those without income, caregivers, persons with disabilities, and vulnerable elderly populations in both urban and rural areas.

The programme supports over 10 million older persons, strengthening community inclusion, enhancing well-being through universal healthcare, income security (via pensions and savings funds), and expanding caregiving capacity via 80,000 trained volunteers nationwide.

Thailand’s implementation drew from the 2002 MIPAA framework and was led by the Department of Older Persons under the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security. National strategies included legal reforms (Act on the Elderly 2003), monthly allowances, caregiver training, community elderly centers, and health service enhancements (e.g. elderly clinics, fast-track lanes, HHC). Monitoring occurred every five years, with university-led evaluations guiding adjustments.

It’s holistic, rights-based, and institutionally embedded, promoting healthy ageing, financial protection, and community empowerment through evidence-based, scalable interventions.

Vulnerable older persons, including in remote and indigenous communities, as well as youth training as caregivers.

Buddy HomeCare's mobile app-based system for healthcare monitoring is a key tool in a program that provides impoverished youth with training as caregivers, while also providing older people with cost-effective, high-quality homecare services.

Buddy HomeCare (BHC) is a social enterprise operated by FOPDEV, developed from earlier volunteer‑based homecare programmes and formally scaled from around 2015 onwards.

The dual approach of addressing ageing in place and youth unemployment benefits underprivileged communities. While there are other examples of healthcare monitoring systems, the Buddy HomeCare  has a unique social enterprise approach serving both paying customers and low-income older persons and families.

https://www.fopdev.or.th 

https://share.google/WpiSGt4NKzghJcwlV

https://www.facebook.com/BuddyHomeCare 

Direct beneficiaries of the report are policymakers, researchers, and service providers who benefit from improved access to reliable data, which support evidence-based planning, monitoring, and service delivery related to population ageing. The ultimate goal is that older persons benefit from more effective policies that affect older persons.

The data provided in the Statistical Bulletin served as a foundation for future aging-related research and international reporting commitments.

The bulletin was jointly developed and published by the National Health Commission, the National Working Commission on Aging, and the National Bureau of Statistics. Data was collected through national surveys and administrative records across sectors such as healthcare, civil affairs, and social security. The process involved coordination among ministries, data harmonization, and standardized reporting formats to ensure accuracy and comparability. The final report was released on the official government portal for public and institutional access.

This practice demonstrates inter-agency coordination, data transparency, and evidence-based policy support. By systematically publishing key statistics on older persons, it ensures informed decision-making and monitoring of aging-related programs. The consistent, public release of such bulletins also fosters accountability and enables researchers, policymakers, and the public to track progress in elderly care and social protection.

Senior citizens who are institutionalized in homes or who are isolated

Over 1000 senior citizens have graduated from the wellness sessions, and they showed high engagement rates. The program has also expanded across 11 different atolls.

Developed due to high levels of loneliness of older persons in the Maldives. Many older persons were in state care due to lack of social skills or lack of family support rather than an illness or disability. This program was developed to help them gain the necessary skills to re-enter society.

This programme addresses key issues that many older persons in Maldives face: isolation and institutional dependency. The programme focuses on social reintegration rather than solely medical needs. Additionally, it highlights the importance of intergenerational initiatives, to ensure precious knowledge is passed down to the younger populations.

Maldives govt initiates wellness project for senior citizens | Atoll Times

The Act benefits users of care centres across demographics—including children, persons with disabilities, juveniles, and senior citizens—by ensuring that care facilities (both residential and day care) operate under proper standards, control, and inspection.

The Act established mandatory registration, inspections, and enforcement mechanisms to ensure operational standards and protect vulnerable groups. As a result, registered care centres operate under clearer regulatory oversight, reducing the risk of unregulated or substandard facilities. For instance:

Drafted by Malaysia’s Ministry of Social Welfare, the Act was passed by Parliament in 1993 and published in the Gazette the same year. Implementation began via phased enforcement: registration requirements, issuance of certificates, inspections, and penalties for unregistered operations—empowered through authorized social welfare officers and the Director General.

It establishes a clear, enforceable regulatory framework mandating registration and oversight of care centres, thereby safeguarding vulnerable populations through structured enforcement and accountability.

• https://commonlii.org/my/legis/consol_act/cca1993121/

Care providers who provide necessary daily care for persons with disabilities and/or older persons

The allowance was incorporated through regulatory amendment and requires medical certification of disability based on guidelines issued by the Director-General of Medical Services. Care providers must sign a declaration acknowledging their caregiving duties, ensuring oversight and compliance.

This practice provides targeted financial support to caregivers while ensuring protection for vulnerable older persons and persons with disabilities. The combination of medical certification, official guidelines, and legal accountability ensures structured and responsible caregiving.

Beneficiaries include retired or near‑retirement professionals (senior specialists and veterans) aged typically 60+, who gain meaningful engagement and supplemental income, while younger generations benefit from mentorship and advisory support.

By 2021, the programme engaged 884 senior professionals in advisory roles and supported 442 with repayable financial assistance, leading to over 1,390 new job placements. It enhanced older persons’ income security, promoted self-employment, and strengthened institutional capacity through intergenerational knowledge transfer.

The program was structured under the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, using national and local budgets. It integrates senior professionals into advisory and income-generating roles via structured grants and support mechanisms, including repayable funding and employment generation schemes.

It transforms ageing into an asset—leveraging accumulated expertise of seniors to foster advisory capacity, create jobs, and honor lifelong contributions, while aligning with both social protection and active ageing goals.

• https://www.population-trends-asiapacific.org/files/documents/MN_MIPAAsurvey_2021.pdf

Caregivers

A multi‑programme evaluation (UNICEF, 2020) found that the caregiver allowance—alongside other social cash transfers—plays a critical role in reducing poverty, vulnerability, and risk, especially in households caring for elderly, disabled, or dependent persons. It contributes significantly to household welfare in both Rarotonga and the Pa Enua

The development of the Caregivers Allowance in the Cook Islands is rooted in the country’s long-standing, tax‑financed social protection system, which began expanding significantly from the 1960s onward, and formally included a caregiver payment by the time the Welfare Act 1989 was established. This Act created the structural basis for multiple welfare payments—including those for older persons, persons with disabilities, and caregivers—and embedded the principle that the state should support families caring for vulnerable members. Over the decades, the allowance evolved through continuous policy refinement driven by government reviews, parliamentary oversight, and social‑sector evaluations. By 2017, the Caregivers Policy and its administration were scrutinized in a Public Accounts Committee inquiry, which examined implementation quality, eligibility rules, and payment mechanisms—showing active policy shaping and administrative strengthening.

It values caregivers and provides social protection. 

Evaluation of social cash transfer programmes in the Cook Islands - UNICEF

Primary beneficiaries are carers (often family members) providing constant care to people with disability, severe illness, or frailty who cannot support themselves independently.

The program supported a rapidly growing carer population. Recipients rose from about 57,800 in 2001 to 301,200 in June 2022, increasing from 0.4% to 1.4% of the population aged 16+. In 2025, reforms allowed carers to work up to 100 hours every 4 weeks, offering greater flexibility and improving labour market participation.

Established under the Social Security Act, administered by Services Australia. A 2008 review expanded eligibility to parents of children with severe disability, adding ~19,000 new recipients. Implementation has relied on legislative adjustments and regular updates to reflect carers’ evolving needs.

It provides long-term, responsive support to carers while adapting rules to promote inclusion, sustainability, and work-life balance.

• https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-welfare/carer-payment
• https://www.news.com.au/finance/economy/australian-economy/millions-of-aussies-to-receive-pension-increase-next-month-as-major-changes-come-to-centrelink/news-story/80c4081d4564e442cdead44ccf6a1f72

Older residents of Akita City, Japan—particularly senior citizens facing barriers to mobility, social engagement, and access to services due to demographic ageing and youth out‑migration.

Recognised as an “Age-Friendly City” in 2019 and honouring “Aging-Friendly Partners” by 2025, the city strengthened public–private collaboration and fostered a more inclusive environment for seniors.

Akita City, a WHO Global Network member since 2011, has advanced age-friendly initiatives such as a one-coin bus service (launched 2011, expanded 2017) to improve elderly mobility, the intergenerational “Club of Friendship Between Generations” to strengthen social ties, and a multi-generational city hall built in 2016 with universal design features like concierge support, wheelchair paths, and heated floors/roads for winter safety. It also formalized an Age-Friendly Partner program engaging local businesses and institutions in senior support.

Akita City has advanced age-friendliness through integrated efforts in transport, infrastructure, governance, and community programs, combining accessible design with social engagement. Since joining the WHO network in 2011, it has sustained and expanded services, built public–private partnerships, and introduced tailored solutions—such as heated mobility paths and low-cost transport—to meet local ageing and winter-related challenges.

• https://www.city.akita.akita.jp/city/pl/pb/koho/htm/20190419/041903.html
• https://www.akita.coop/topics/detail.php?p=377&utm