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Life of elders in a youth-based world

Mail Online
The world is aging so fast that most countries are not prepared to support their swelling numbers of elderly people, according to a global study by the United Nations and an elder rights group.
The report ranks the social and economic well-being of elders in 91 countries, with Sweden coming out on top and Afghanistan at the bottom.
By the year 2050, for the first time in history, seniors over the age of 60 will outnumber children under the age of 15.
The Global AgeWatch Index (www.globalagewatch.org) was created by elder advocacy group HelpAge International and the UN Population Fund in part to address a lack of international data on the extent and impact of global aging.
The index was welcomed by elder rights advocates, who have long complained that a lack of data has thwarted their attempts to raise the issue on government agendas.
The report fits into an increasingly complex picture of aging and what it means to the world. On the one hand, the fact that people are living longer is a testament to advances in health care and nutrition, and advocates emphasize that the elderly should be seen not as a burden but as a resource. Abdul Wasay, 75, a former cook and blacksmith spends most of his day trying to sell toothbrushes and toothpaste on a busy street corner in Kabul's main market. The job nets him just $6 a day — barely enough to support his wife. He can only afford to buy meat twice a month; the family relies mainly on potatoes and curried vegetables.
'It's difficult because my knees are weak and I can't really stand for a long time,' he says. 'But what can I do? It's even harder in winter, but I can't afford treatment.'
He says many helpless older people cannot find work because they are not strong enough to do day labour, and some resort to •’egging.
'You have to keep working no matter how old you are — no one is rich enough to stop,' he says. 'Life is very difficult.'
Prosperity in itself does not guarantee protection for the old. The world's rising economic powers — the so-called BRIGS nations of Brazil, Russia, India, Ghina and South Africa — rank lower in the index than some poorer countries such as Uruguay and Panama.
However, the report found, wealthy nations are in general better prepared for aging than poorer ones. Sweden, where the pension system is now 100 years old, makes the top of the list because of its social support, education and health coverage, followed by Norway, Germany, the Netherlands and Canada. The United States comes in eighth.
Still, even in an elder-friendly country like Sweden, aging is not without its challenges.