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Sustainable living in age-friendly cities for Malaysia

Ageing populations and urbanisation are two global trends that are shaping the 21st century. Our cities are growing and the shareof people over 60 years old is increasing rapidly. This has serious implications to urban and economic planning.

Recognising that older people are a resource for their families, communities and economies in supportive and enabling livingenvironments for a country, the World Health Organisation (WHO) regards active ageing as a lifelong process shaped by severalfactors that, alone and acting together, favour the promotion of healthy lifestyles and urban security for older adults.

Why age-friendly cities?An age-friendly city encourages active ageing by optimising opportunities for health, participation and security in order toenhance the quality of life as people age. In practical terms, an age-friendly city adapts its structures and services to beaccessible to and inclusive of older people with varying needs and capacities. It also means a city that is friendly to disabled,

children and families. Effectively, an age-friendly city is a people-friendly city.

Eight aspects of an age-friendly cityThere are eight aspects in a comprehensive picture of the city’s age-friendliness, as recommended by WHO (Source: Global Age-friendly City: A Guide,published by World Health Organisation (WHO) 2007). These aspects had been identified in research studies and surveys with older people on thecharacteristics of elderly-friendly communities.

These eight aspects cover the features of the city’s structures, environment, services and policies that reflect the determinants of active ageing and they areaspects of city life that overlap and interact with each other.

Source: Global Age-friendly City: A Guide, published by World Health Organisation (WHO) 2007

Respect and social inclusion are reflected in the accessibility of the buildings and spaces and in the range of opportunities that the city offers to older peoplefor social participation, entertainment or employment. Social participation, in turn, influences social inclusion, as well as access to information. Housingaffects the need for community support services, while social, civic and economic participation partly depend on the accessibility and safety of outdoorspaces and public buildings.

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Transportation and communication and information particularlyinteract with the other areas. Without transportation or adequatemeans of obtaining information to allow people to meet andconnect, other urban facilities and services that could supportactive ageing are simply inaccessible.

For MalaysiaIf Malaysia wants to be a developed nation that accommodates anageing society in the next 10 to 20 years, there is a need to be insync with the converging trends of rapid growth of the agedpopulation and urbanisation. Age-friendly cities are required in thiscountry as quickly as possible. This can be achieved by learningand improving successful models used in other cities that are nowenjoying the economic and lifestyle advantages of beingage-friendly.

Building an age-friendly city is not an overnight project but along-term mission, starting with a clear vision based on today’sinformed society. Steps must be taken now to ensure futuresuccess.

Malaysia can leverage the “active ageing” concept defined by WHO as a model to guide the development of age-friendly cities. The following are key areasof concern identified by older people and those who serve older people in different areas of urban living:

outdoor spaces and buildingstransportationhousingsocial participationrespect and social inclusioncivic participation and employmentcommunication and informationcommunity supporthealth services

To achieve sustainable living in age-friendly cities in Malaysia, we require a platform for key stakeholders to initiate the facilitation and advocacy process forgovernment agencies, business entities and communities.

A series of education sessions, survey studies and forums on ‘Sustainable Living In An Age-Friendly City” will serve as the communication channel andplatform to educate the public and for important stakeholders to dialogue on the subject matter.

Towards an age-friendly city for Greater Kuala Lumpur (KL)In line with the Government Transformation Programme, potential stakeholders including international and local industry experts, academicians, advocators,business community, medical centres and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), need to work in collaboration towards promoting national guidelinesand policies on age-friendly cities for Malaysians.

This also ties in with the Greater KL Vision 2020; turning the fusion of Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Selayang, Ampang Jaya, Petaling Jaya, Subang Jaya, ShahAlam, Klang, Kajang and Sepang into a vibrant economic hub sustained by a people-friendly metropolis. Such an initiative will also achieve the NationalEconomic Model (NEM) objectives of ‘inclusiveness’ and ‘sustainability’ to improve people’s quality of life, including older persons.

If you would like to collaborate with Carol Yip to build sustainable age-friendly cities in Malaysia, e-mail [email protected]

Read other articles about ageing society:

Carol Yip - author, financial coach and co-organiser of Retirement Transformation Conference 2010Coming to grips with an ageing societyDefining ageNot a new issueTo retire or not

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