Database of good practices on ageing

Older customers aged 60 and over, particularly those who have difficulty accessing or using digital services and technologies with confidence.

According to a recent company report, around 70 million elderly individuals were expected to have used the direct hotline for older adults by the end of 2023, accounting for a total of 320 million cases.

The digital divide has been identified as a challenge for older persons in China, where technology is rapidly advancing. The Silver Guardian Plan was developed as part of China Mobile’s commitment to closing the digital divide and providing supportive services to elderly customers. Initially launched under the "Four Ones" concept, the program offered service packages and support exclusively for the elderly, as well as online educational lectures on digital literacy and security, and on-site demonstrations and supports.

This plan demonstrates how the telecommunication sector can promote digital literacy among the elderly effectively. The services provided in this framework, such as an easier interface and door-to-door service, offer direct and measurable solutions to closing the digital divide.

How to build an elderly-friendly digital society - Chinadaily.com.cn

The programme supports families caring for fully dependent persons with disabilities, subject to income eligibility (income below two‑thirds of the net minimum wage).

By January–July 2024, 555,000 beneficiaries received support; the monthly allowance rose from 7,608 TL to 9,077 TL, and 4.9 billion TL was deposited in one month, totalling 30.2 billion TL over that period. As of May/June 2025, approximately 541,599 disabled individuals benefited from home care support, enhancing their ability to remain at home with their families.

Based on the 2005 Disability Act, the allowance was institutionalized via a 2006 regulation detailing eligibility, implementation, evaluation, and payment processes. Over time, payments have been streamlined to deposit directly into beneficiaries’ bank accounts, and periodically adjusted to reflect public salary coefficients.

It enables equal access to care by empowering families to care for fully dependent relatives at home, preserving family unity, enhancing dignity, and ensuring fiscal transparency through direct, indexed payments.

• https://www.aile.tr/eyhgm-en/haberler/minister-mahinur-ozdemir-goktas-the-ministry-has-increasingly-started-to-pay-home-care-allowance-payments-to-the-accounts-of-the-right-holders/

Older persons without family support in Kyrgyzstan, especially those with low income. 

The programme has been able to reach older persons without families. 

The origins are in the 1990s as result of the economic crisis after the collapse of the Soviet Union, which left many older people unable to survive on insufficient pensions. Many older persons were left alone as younger relatives migrated for work, leading to widespread poverty and social isolation among older adults. It was founded with external support from bilateral donors. It also collaborates with the Government of Kyrgyzstan. 

Babushka Adoption is a good practice because it provides reliable financial, social, and emotional support to highly vulnerable older people who live alone and cannot meet basic needs. Its low‑cost sponsorship model effectively boosts inadequate pensions, while trained social workers offer essential home‑based care and reduce isolation. Operating in high‑poverty regions, the programme fills critical gaps in social protection and has delivered sustained impact since 1999, improving dignity, wellbeing, and daily living conditions for elderly people in Kyrgyzstan.

Kyrgyzstan: Adopt-a-Babushka Program Keeps Some Elderly Kyrgyz Citizens Going | Eurasianet

Older persons requiring long-term care. 

The programme has expanded caregiving support for frail, sick, and bedridden older persons by enabling them to receive essential daily‑living assistance within their own homes, improving comfort, safety, and continuity of care. It has mobilized and trained community volunteers, strengthening local caregiving capacity and fostering stronger family and community engagement in eldercare.

The Home Care Support Services for Senior Citizens (HCSSSC) in the Philippines was developed in response to the country’s rapidly growing older population and the rising need for long‑term care, leading the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to formalize the programme through Administrative Order Series of 2010, which provided the first official guidelines for its creation. Drawing on research showing that many frail and sick seniors were left without adequate daily support, the programme evolved from earlier community‑based initiatives—previously called Neighborhood Support Services for Older Persons—and was shaped to involve family caregivers, trained community volunteers, and local government units as core partners in service delivery.

It strengthens ageing in place, aligning with global recommendations for community‑based care. It uses a low‑cost, volunteer‑enhanced model suitable for both urban and rural communities. It integrates social protection, caregiving, and community engagement in a single framework.

Home Care | STB - Social Technology Bureau

Older persons across Malaysia—targeting seniors living alone, including bedridden individuals and those in need of community engagement.

Nearly 150 senior‑citizen activity centres (PAWE) have been established, serving as hubs for social, educational, therapeutic, and recreational activities that reached 19,904 older persons. Additionally, 451 NGO volunteers provide Home Help Services to assist 655 older persons with daily needs and healthcare visits.

KPWKM set up a multi‑sectoral governance structure: the National Advisory and Consultative Council for Older Persons, chaired by the Minister, monitoring implementation and mobilizing stakeholders across 7 sub‑committees (health, education, economy, social, etc.). The SMART‑partnership model engaged NGOs and community organizations: the government provided guidance, funding, and reporting systems, while CSOs delivered frontline services (e.g., activity centres, Home Help, WE CARE transport).

It exemplifies inclusive, well-coordinated, cross-sectoral governance, effectively leveraging SMART-partnerships between government and NGOs to deliver impactful, community-centered services for older persons.

• https://www.helpage.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/malaysia-population-ageing-policy-case-study.pdf

Senior citizens of Japan

By Feb 2019, there were 10,592 users of the service, and seniors often used the service for many months in a row. A study by Inagaki and Awata (2020) showed that the service had a positive impact on mental health of elderly who live alone in social isolation.

Japan Post is Japan's national postal service. The Minamori Watch over service allows older persons all over Japan to subscribe to receive one 60-minute home visit or have daily phone check ins (for a monthly fee of Y1000). 

Addresses the large number of seniors living alone in Japan, and allows seniors to take charge of their lives by subscribing to have social interaction and health check ins.

Does the Home-Visit Communicating Service by Postal Workers Improve the Mental Health of Older Persons Living Alone? | Innovation in Aging | Oxford Academic

Older persons and whole of society 

The call center receives thousands of calls every year, showing that it is a well-accepted mechanism to raise complaints. 

The Immediate Response Hotline was developed by the Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan as part of reforms to improve access to the Ombudsman and increase the efficiency of citizen complaints and inquiries. It was established by creating a unified call center reachable via the number “916”, consolidating previous hotlines into one modern telephone and IT-supported service. This development was carried out under the National Action Plan on Promotion of Open Government (2020–2022) to expand citizens’ ability to lodge appeals and ensure rapid handling of complaints. The unified hotline operates 24/7 across the country, including weekends and holidays, enabling people to call for immediate assistance from the Ombudsman’s Office.

The hotline is considered a good practice because it provides continuous, low-threshold access to human-rights protection services through a 24/7 unified call centre, removing barriers such as written applications or physical travel. It is replicable, as it relies on standard call-centre infrastructure that can be integrated into national human-rights institutions, and sustainable, as it is embedded within the Ombudsman’s permanent institutional framework and referenced in national and international policy reporting.

Microsoft Word - Law Ombudsman.doc

Hotline for Immediate Response by the Office of the Ombudsman | Ageing Policies Database - UNECE            

Maldives Bureau of Statistics (MBS), Ministry of Education (MoE), World Bank (WB), Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE), ADB

The incusion of an additoinal question in HIES 2019 provided data that allowed the calculation of NTAs for Maldives

Discussion with an NTA consultant and the National Bureau of Statistics on an additional question could be incorporated into a questionnaire that had already been developed.

It facilitated for better analysis in the country; Poverty & inequality analysis, NTA analysis. And provided information on the number of students in tertiary education for Ministry of Higher Education.

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Poor older persons in Sri Lanka

Seniors reported an increase in dignity as many seniors were able to move into their first permanent home, saying it restored their status in the village. The programme also encouraged many adults to move back to their families and care for their parents, as the improved living conditions made multi-generational living more comfortable.

This programme was developed as a poverty alleviation project to solve homelessness, and was later further defined into a elderly-friendly housing model. The goal transitioned from simply building shelter to creating age-friendly havens that support ageing in place.

This initiative has shown how a small change in the life of an older person can improve their quality of life greatly. The programme supports the "ageing in place" concept, allowing seniors to live out their days safely at home.

NSE