EU Green Paper on Ageing

In January 2021, as part of its work around demographic change in the EU, the European Commission published its "Green Paper on Ageing", launching a broad policy debate to discuss the challenges and opportunities from ageing demographics, tying into the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and UN Decade for Healthy Ageing. Competences for dealing with the effects of ageing largely reside with Member States, however, the EU is well placed to identify key issues and trends, as well as supporting action through its programmes.

The Green Paper takes a life-cycle approach that reflects the universal impact of ageing and focuses on both the personal and wider societal implications of ageing. These include lifelong learning and healthy lifestyles, as well as funding adequate pensions, the need for growing the healthcare workforce and the challenges around long-term care for older people. The four themes around which the Green Paper is structured are:

  • Laying the foundations
  • Making the most of our working lives
  • New opportunities and challenges in retirement
  • Meeting the growing needs of an ageing population.

You can download the Green Paper below.