WSIS Forum 2022

For the third year in a row, GCOA partnered with ITU and the WSIS Forum to host the WSIS Forum Special Track on ICTs and Older Persons and again host the WSIS Healthy Ageing Innovation Prize in 2022. Throughout the first week of May, GCOA and WSIS organized a series of sessions examining the potential for digital technologies in an aging world, including how they can help combat age-based discrimination in the workplace, achieve healthier aging, build smarter cities, ensure the financial inclusion of older adults, and support millions of caregivers across the world and in digital inclusion across the generations to enable the Decade of Healthy Ageing. GCOA co-organized this special track in collaboration with stakeholders including Centre for Socio-Eco-Nomic Development (CSEND), E-Seniors, UN Agencies -ITU, WHO, UN DESA, and others.

The WSIS Healthy Ageing Innovation Prize recognizes and award the best digital technologies that support healthy and active aging for adults age 60+ in one of five categories:

    • Alzheimer’s and Cognitive Decline
    • Frailty
    • Immunizations
    • Transportation and Mobility
    • Elder Caregiving

The winner, HiNouNou, and 11 finalists were selected by a panel of international judges and announced the first week of June 2022. The winner and finalists receive a cash prize as well as recognition at the WSIS Forum.

Click here to see descriptions and watch video from each of the sessions ICTs and Older Persons track.

Watch Mike Hodin’s interview below on the significance of the WSIS Special Track on ICTs and Older Person in today’s world:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=osCIE5Pn9g0&list=PLpoIPNlF8P2PZ5ASutU7eWwvIRHj50exn&index=4

Latest Developments

We keep our members and partners in touch with the most recent updates and opinions in the worldwide dialogue on population longevity and related issues.

2024 AMR Preparedness Index Progress Report Highlights Urgent Need For Global Action Against Antimicrobial Resistance

Today, the Global Coalition on Aging (GCOA) and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) launched the 2024 AMR Preparedness Index Progress Report. Released in the lead up to the United Nations General Assembly 2024 High-level Meeting on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) this September, the 2024 Progress Report assesses how the eleven largest global economies have advanced on calls to action laid out in the 2021 AMR Preparedness Index.

New Global Analysis Across Five Cities Shows Inequities in Adult Immunization Uptake, Signaling Need to Redesign Local and National Policy Interventions

GSK, in collaboration with the Global Coalition on Aging (GCOA), announced a new report from the IQVIA Institute for Human Data Science (IQVIA Institute). The report, funded by GSK, explores the role of social and structural determinants of health in adult vaccine access and uptake across five global cities with strong data about their aging populations: Bangkok, Thailand; Brussels, Belgium; Chicago, US; Manchester, United Kingdom; and New York City, US.

New Report From the Global Coalition on Aging Highlights the Connection Between Adult Immunization and Economic Health in Aging APEC Region

As leaders from across the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) region convene in San Francisco over the next week, a new report from the Global Coalition on Aging (GCOA) points to investments in healthy aging as a growing economic imperative amid the region’s changing demographics. According to the new report, programs that keep populations healthy, active, and productive – like adult immunization – are increasingly becoming a prerequisite for economic stability and growth.

Menopause, the Silver Economy and Workplace Opportunities

As we recognise World Menopause Day, take a moment to consider the economic power, diverse expertise and skills, and incredible societal contributions of the estimated 1.1 billion post-menopausal women worldwide by 2025—a population on-par with China or India, and dwarfing any other country. Indeed, if we want to fuel the vibrant $15 trillion silver economy, societies, governments, and employers must empower older women in the future of work, including solutions that fight stigma and increase workplace support related to menopause.

Best Practices for Engaging a Multigenerational Workforce

Employers are grappling with a myriad of workforce-related issues ranging from productivity to attracting and retaining talent, but many may be overlooking some seismic shifts that are reshaping the future of work: longevity, population aging, and the multigenerational workforce.

Brazil Must Fight Antibiotic Resistance

The threat posed by antimicrobial resistance is urgent and spares no country - including Brazil. According to The Lancet, 63 deaths per 100,000 are associated with AMR in Brazil and Paraguay, a rate that exceeds the average for Latin America and the Caribbean. AMR-associated deaths in Brazil are second only to cardiovascular diseases and cancers.