The ability to measure and monitor the outcomes of policies for active and healthy ageing is a priority topic for both academic research and current policymaking, a UNECE/European Commission international seminar demonstrated last week in Brussels.
The seminar, entitled 'Building an evidence base for active ageing policies: the Active Ageing Index and its potential', took place on 16 and 17 April, and was attended by 150 participants from 35 countries representing the diversity of the UNECE region and even going beyond it.
Papers presented at the seminar showcased the results of a broad range of studies, from cross-national comparisons to examinations of the applicability of the index at the sub-national level. For example, the national statistical office of Italy has calculated the index for each region of Italy, and papers from the Basque country and the province of Biscay in Spain also showed how the index can be applied at a sub-national level.
While the AAI results have been released for countries of the European Union, researchers at the seminar demonstrated both the need and the possibility to use the index beyond the borders of the EU: these included UNECE countries such as the Russian Federation, as well as countries in other world regions including China, India, and a comparative study of six Latin American countries.
The task of adapting the index to either a subnational level or to a non-EU country context is complex, since the AAI was initially designed to be calculated on the basis of European surveys, most of which are conducted at the national level. Nevertheless, the need for a common tool for measuring and comparing the outcomes of active ageing policies is so strong, it appears, that researchers are investing their efforts to surmount the challenges of data availability and comparability, and are now starting to see the fruits of their labours in policy-relevant study results.
These efforts were recognized at the seminar by the presentation of awards for the best paper in each of the seminar themes and the best posters, as well as special awards for early-career researchers. An independent evaluation board selected the papers and posters demonstrating innovative approaches, high methodological quality and policy relevance.
Among the award-winning contributions were ‘AAI as an Evidence Base for Developing a Comprehensive Active Ageing Policy in Russia’, by Maria Varlamova, Anna Ermolina and Oxana Sinyavskaya, which was awarded the prize for the best paper on the use of AAI in non-EU countries. The paper explored the possibilities and challenges in constructing the index using Russian data sources, and was one of three studies which looked at applying the AAI to the Russian context. These contributions draw attention to the relative strengths in ageing-related policies and outcomes in comparison to the EU countries, such as a traditionally high level of educational attainment, above-average financial security indicators, and the areas that could be improved, including independent living, access to health services, and volunteering activities.
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For more information on the Active Ageing Index, including presentations and from the International seminar, visit the AAI wiki.
A selection of the papers from the seminar will be compiled in a forthcoming book.
An analytical report looking at 28 EU countries is available on the UNECE website.