Results of INTERREG IV C Capitalization Exercise

Results of INTERREG IVC Capitalization

Exercise

EUROPEAN REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT FUND

Interreg IVC Capitalisation on Demographic Change:

some results INNOVAge and CASA Final Conference Oct. 7 2014, Brussels Roos Galjaard Bureau PAU

Bureau PAU Plan AdviesUitvoering

Innovation systems Demographic change

Innovation capacity of SMEs Rural development

Eco-innovation Climate change

Creative industries Energy efficiency

Entrepreneurship Renewable energy

E-government services Sustainable transport

Topics Interreg IVC Capitalisation

Bureau PAU Plan AdviesUitvoeringBureau PAU Plan AdviesUitvoering

Demographic change in EU

Demographic change can be defined as the process of population ageing and population decline - the overall decrease in a region's population over time.

Population change NUTS 3 regions (per 1000 inhabitants)

Source: EUROSTAT 2013


Low fertility rates, continuous rises in life expectancy and retirement of the baby boomer generation…

• last 20 years: a 38.9 % rise in older persons aged 65 and above. In contrast, the number of 0 to 19 year olds fell by 15.5 %

• despite a growing population, the EU labour force is shrinking, increasing the burden on workers to provide for the social expenditure needed by an ageing population


old-age-dependency ratio

rises !!

the number of elderly people at an age when they are generally economically inactive (i.e. aged 65 and over), compared to the number of people of working age (i.e. 15-64 years old).

Dark yellow = higher dependency ratio

AND…

233 Final conference INNOVAge and CASA Brussels October 7th 2014

Regional population decline ↓

impact on e.g. public and social services, housing, infrastructure, healthcare, …

policies are slow to adapt, leaving

some people excluded.

main challenge: liveability of areas and the quality of life for inhabitants


Demographic change is acknowledged by Europe to

be one of the major challenges for now and

increasingly so in the future.


What can we learn from

Interreg IVC thematic

capitalisation on

demographic change??


9 projects tackling ‘Demographic Change’

100 partners involved from 22 EU Member States + Norway

DAA

Analysed Interreg IVC projects on Demographic Change


The main themes

The ‘paradigm shift’ from growth to decline offers opportunities for experiment, out of the box thinking and innovation in local planning and governance.

Inspirational approaches and practices


Many good practices


Recommendations


Economic Diversification

• Investigate the potential of the silver economy; • SMEs could innovate their products by

focusing on the needs of the elderly; • More emphasis should be given to innovation

hubs or labs where companies, research institutes and the governments can build on new entrepreneurial opportunities.


Social services and healthcare

• Plan facilities and services accordingly to people’s needs and choices;

• Develop health care towards a more comprehensive,

integrated system, whereby all important stakeholders are involved at an early stage and cooperate to deliver services of high quality;

• Local and regional governments should facilitate and

support the development of innovative services by adapting legal frameworks and through policy action.


Independent living

• Train the patient and caregivers in how to use (ICT) services and also communicate these benefits to informal caregivers;

• End-user needs approach;

• Consider techniques but also

potential beneficiaries’ behaviour, organisational problems, and social and cultural aspects.


On EU level

• More financial instruments specifically dedicated to active ageing: invest in the skills of the older population;

• Mitigate the regional disparities within Europe by

encouraging and facilitating creativity and innovation, including entrepreneurship, at all levels;

• Emphasise the benefits of innovations in technology,

ICT, housing and public-private partnerships in the area of senior care to create major potential for Europe's competitiveness.


Last but not least

To increase good practice and solutions in relation to demographic change: encourage networking between regions in Europe and improve processes of exchange.


Thank you for your attention! For the full report go to http://www.interreg4c.eu/capitalisation/ Roos Galjaard [email protected] +31 50 549 09 02 / +31 6 50214869

Documents

Results of INTERREG IV C Capitalization Exercise