On December 14, 1990 the UN General Assembly designated October 1 as the International Day of Older Persons, following up on initiatives such as the Vienna International Plan of Action on Ageing, which was adopted by the 1982 World Assembly on Ageing and endorsed later that year by the assembly.
The International Day of Older Persons was observed for the first time throughout the world on October 1, 1991.
The theme this year is: Older Persons and the Achievements of the Millennium Development Goals.
To mark International Day of Older Persons in The Gambia, Ageing with a Smile Initiative (ASI) will be organising a "Meet with the Press" today, 1 October at the National Malaria Control Programme office starting at 10 am and will also be conducting a free health screening and consultation for the elderly in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and Sheikh Zayed Regional Eye Centre tomorrow, 2 October 2010 from 10 am to 5 pm at Sukuta Health Centre.
