Red Cross of Serbia participating in the UNECE Ministerial Conference in Lisbon
United Nations Ministerial Conference on ageing is organised every five years since Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA) was adopted in 2002. The Conference primarily aims to monitor the implementation of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing and provide opportunities to measure the developments made by the Member States in improving the quality of life of older people in the region (Europe, North America and Central Asia) over the past five years but also to provide recommendations for priority activities in the coming period. This year the Conference was organised in Lisbon, Portugal on 21 and 22 September and the introductory events – NGO and researchers’ fora took place the day before. The Conference was organised by United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). Its title was “A Sustainable Society for All Ages: Realizing the Potential of Living Longer.”
There were approximately 400 participants at the conference including 34 ministers, deputy ministers and state secretaries from UNECE region as well as guests from Portuguese-speaking countries outside of the region (Brazil, Cabo Verde, São Tomé and Principe and Mozambique).
Following the invitation by UNECE, Natasa Todorovic of the Red Cross of Serbia participated in the expert panel discussion “Ensuring Ageing with Dignity”. During her address she highlighted that ageing with dignity has to be included in all policies but that dignity must also be a part of the whole life cycle. We all expect dignity in our older age so it is our shared responsibility to contribute to reaching the objective: having dignity be a starting point in development of policies related to ageing. Natasa Todorovic talked about the key elements of ageing with dignity, from equal participation in decision-making, through engagement in the community through volunteering and advocacy, to ensuring accessibility of services as well as developmental plans adjusted to all ages.A society that fosters dignity is a society whose citizens are equal.
In addition to the expert panel discussion the Red Cross of Serbia representative Natasa Todorovichad a presentation and address during a side event session organised by UNFPA to present the results of the research study “Older People in Rural Areas” done last year in partnership between the Red Cross of Serbia and Serbian Commissioner for Protection of Equality, and supported by UNFPA.The research looked into the lives of older people in rural areas, exploring their needs, missing services and general status, using a representative sample of older population from better developed and underdeveloped communities across Serbia. The research showed the impact of migration from rural to urban areas to the development of infrastructure and different services in rural areas, with rural population, which is also demographically older than urban population, being put in less favourable and unequal position. The challenge for policy makers is to create sustainable services that will be accessible to older people in rural areas.
This is the first time a National Society of the Red Cross has been invited to participate in such Conference.
The delegation of the Republic of Serbia at the conference was led by Minister without portfolio, Prof.drSlavicaDjukicDejanovic. Natasa Todorovic and dr Milutin Vracevic of the Red Cross of Serbia were its members.
Programme:
Speakers biography:
http://www.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/pau/age/Ministerial_Conference_Lisbon/Programme/Biographies.pdf
Side event UNFPA, Equity for all ages: lessons from the region:
Poster Exhibition:
