The Ministry of Health amends the National Strategy for Healthy Aging from the Life Cycle – Pan American Health Organization/WHO

San Jose, Friday, May 26, 2023. The Ministry of Health of Costa Rica, as the governing body of public health, responsible for the care of healthy aging, has amended the National Strategy for Healthy Aging from the Life Cycle for the period 2022 to 2026, in order to respond from the social and health sphere so that people enjoy mental, physical and spiritual well-being, and can From reaching old age with optimal functional capacity.

This national strategy contributes to a vision at the state level of a model for promoting and strengthening healthy lifestyles and the comprehensive development of aging, which guides the formulation of policies and social participation, through institutional and local projects, and the strengthening of health services, said Dr. Marie Monif, Vice President and Minister of Health, “care range, and to advance research related to factors that promote active, healthy aging.”

The document defines areas of intervention, activities, managers, deadlines and indicators for compliance with the defined strategic lines. This was prepared jointly with public, private and civil society actors involved in this issue, as well as with the support of the Pan American Health Organization/WHO.

In Costa Rica, according to projections by the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC), demographic change will keep the proportion of the young population declining and the population increasing in age. The population under the age of 15 will continue to decline in the next 40 years, reaching 956,183 people by 2050.

These data reflect that in Costa Rica there is a shift towards a population that continues to age, with trends towards higher life expectancy and lower births. Such data demonstrate and confirm predictions of an accelerated aging process.

“PAHO/WHO recognizes the country’s commitment to promoting healthy aging, understood as a process that deals with the course of life, which means providing conditions so that people of all ages have the conditions necessary to develop and stay healthy in later life. The National Strategy of Costa Rica is closely linked closely related to the four areas of action of the WHO Decade of Healthy Aging, which seeks to: a) change the way we think about aging; b) ensure that the capabilities of older persons are enhanced; c) deliver integrated, person-centered care; d) provide access to health services and long-term care In a way that meets the needs of older people earlier.“Costa Rica is a model country for the region by making the issue a national priority and working hard to solve it,” said Dr. Alfonso Tenorio, PAHO/WHO Representative in Costa Rica.

This trend includes changes in the needs of the elderly population, be it education, health or infrastructure, among others. This demographic change forces society to think of development based on the age of the population, as biological aging has very different social, economic and cultural consequences and considerations depending on time and place.

For this reason, the mission of the Ministry is to direct and lead social actors to develop actions that protect and improve the physical, mental and social health of the population, therefore, the issue of promotion, prevention and attention to healthy aging is essential for the institution.

There are challenges to ensuring that older people maintain their quality of life and are able to continue to contribute to the country’s social development, and for this, detailed work is required with the state and community institutions.

According to World Bank data, in 2021, people aged 65 or over accounted for 9.54% of the world’s population. This proportion has nearly doubled in the past six decades, from just under 5% in 1960. This age group has gone from 150 million in 1960 to 747 million in 2021. By 2025, it is estimated that there will be 1.2 billion senior citizens. In the world, two out of every three will live in developing countries.

The WHO Decade of Healthy Aging 2020-2030 was announced in December 2020. This achievement aims to promote healthy aging and improve the lives of older people, their families and communities; In turn, the decade suggests the need for fundamental changes not only in the actions people take but also in the way they think about age and aging.