Ageing as opportunity | Overviews

#Ageing #opportunity #Overviews

October 1, the world marks the International Day of the Older People. This is like a remote problem in Pakistan, because in our public conversation, the famous “Youth Blood” is still dominated. Still, the number one tells different stories. More than 13 million Pakistanis are already 60 years and more. By 2050, that number will increase to 36 million. It is a larger population than the common population from today’s Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad.

Although this change is often spoken only in terms of growing costs and dependence, it is another way to see it. Worldwide, policy makers and businesses are talking about the “silver economy”, which is the economic and social value created by the elderly. For Pakistan, which faces financial pressure and limited resources, the silver economy can be an important opportunity if it is accepted soon.

Older people don’t just rely. They are living reserves of skill, knowledge and experience. They are also consumers with requirements that create new goods and services. Many of these people are able to extend their work life, start small businesses, guide young workers, and take care of grandchildren, which allows mothers to join the labor force. In other words, the re -age of aging can not be re -concentrated as a social burden but as an economic driver who reinforces families, communities and markets.

This is not just theory. In my previous article on “active and healthy aging”, I emphasized that aging should not be equal with inevitable lack. It can also be a phase of renewal, creativity and partnerships. Throughout Pakistan, retired teachers still give tutor tutor to neighboring children, former engineers advise young businessmen, and grandparents maintain family structure by providing free care. These characters are often hidden in GDP data, but their contribution is undeniable. Economists call it “inter -valuable creation”, which is a process by which older people transmit skills, strengthen communities, and give the younger generations a better chance of success. It is not about the charity to recognize it. It is about smart economics.

Experiments abroad show that silver economy can be raised by policies and investment that unlock these hidden partnerships. For example, Germany and Japan encourage step -by -step retirement so that older workers can slowly go into part -time or flexible roles, rather than suddenly withdrawn from the labor force. It not only specializes in companies but also reduces pension burden. Some governments have gone further by offering tax concessions to the firms that maintain or restore old employees. In Singapore, skilled programs and digital literacy classes are employed by old workers, while a lifetime learning vouchers in the European Union are also available in later life. Mexico’s non -controversial pension and Brazilian micro pension schemes show how developing countries can guarantee the minimum income safety, even for those who spent their lives in informal work.

These examples are important to Pakistan. We already have a slight move, the Ehsas Ba-Himat Buzurg Program, which provides cash support to the elderly. But the coverage is thin, the benefits are limited and inflation has eliminated their value. Increasing this in a universal old -fashioned allowance, which is cost -living, can reduce the risk rapidly and provide stable injections into local economies. Each money is transferred to older people – in the suburbs, school fees for neighboring shops, medicines or grandchildren rapidly circulate in school fees. Social protection for the elders is not dead. This is a stimulus for communities.

Worldwide, policy makers and businesses are talking about the “silver economy”, which is the economic and social value created by the elderly. For Pakistan, which is facing financial pressure and limited resources, the silver economy can be an important opportunity.

The silver economy also extends to the markets. In Asia and Europe, industries from health care to housing and financial services to tourism are already adopting the needs of older consumers. Assistant equipment, television, senior friendly accommodation and recreational services are on the rise. Governments have often supported them through grants, standards and public private partnerships. For Pakistan, where entrepreneurship and small businesses are dynamic, it is an opportunity to create new jobs by meeting the inevitable demand. Think of locally produced low -cost hearing AIDS, about aging friendly residential plans for older individuals or digital services. These are not just welfare measures. They are hitting

Waiting for investors Kate opportunities.

Another lesson from abroad is important to deal with aging. Despite cultural devotion to the elderly, Pakistani workplace often considers old employees worth spending. Reduction of productivity or stereotypes about complexity lead to elimination. Still, research shows that intercontinental teams connect young people’s creativity with the experience of the elderly and prove to be more modern and stable. Campaigns in Europe and East Asia have called aging an asset. Similar national efforts in Pakistan can change the workplace. A society that appreciates its elders is also one who prepares better for his future.

Currently, Pakistan’s dialogue is closed on the proportion of dependence and financial burden. But if we change our point of view, three fields emerge as opportunities.

First, using experience: By activating flexible work, second carrier and the role of teachers, we can tap decades of accumulated knowledge that are now often unused.

Second, driving demand: Industries, from health care to leisure, can develop by designing products and services for older consumers.

Third, reducing dependence: Rescue health care, lifetime learning and digital involvement can help the elderly stay free for longer, which reduces the pressure on families and the state.

Each of them needs to change the policy deliberately, but no one is out of reach.

Can you look like such a change in practice? It will start with anchor style, active and healthy age in the principles of health, participation and security. This means that the gathering of ministries of health, labor, planning and social security to work with a common vision. This will also mean that investing in expertise and digital literacy programs for older adults through universities, professional institutes and NGOs. Reforms are essential to allowing labor policies to retire, flexible contracts and firms to restore older workers. During this time, municipal governments need to think about age -friendly infrastructure. Finally, Pakistan should encourage silver markets by supporting auxiliary technologies, healthcare services and entrepreneurship in micro -pensions.

These reforms are not just about the elderly. They are about making Pakistan’s economy more comprehensive, more flexible and more dynamic. They can reduce financial stress, create new markets, and strengthen interfaith solidarity. Above all, they can help us look at the age of age, not as a lack of aging. People and the nation.

Since the International Day of the United Nations reminds us of the old people, societies face this popular change everywhere. The choice is whether to consider it like a crisis or an opportunity. For Pakistan, a young nation still, but for a rapid age, provides the opportunity to move beyond the silver economy curve. We can continue to rely on the older people, or we can recognize them as workers, teachers, innovators and consumers whose contributions can raise us all. The latter’s profit will not only improve the lives of our seniors but will also strengthen our economy and social fabric.

The promise of a silver economy is to us. Even if we occupy it, it depends on how courageously we are ready to re -imagine the aging.

Author is Provost in the University of Management and Technology, Lahore.