According to ASI, the theme invites societies to think beyond simply adding years to life and consider whether those additional years can be lived with health, dignity, security, purpose and participation.
"Put simply, it means asking a very practical question: If we're living longer, how do we make our society more age-friendly?" ASI said.
An age-friendly society, the organisation explained, is one in which older people can continue to live with dignity, remain connected to their families and communities, participate in decisions that affect their lives, and contribute their knowledge and experience.
ASI said this goes beyond healthcare to include social protection, income security, housing, transport, access to information and services, opportunities to work, community life, and protection of rights.
Progress in The Gambia
The organisation said there is reason for encouragement in The Gambia.
In June 2024, the National Assembly ratified the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Older Persons in Africa, an important step in strengthening recognition and protection of older persons' rights. The remaining step is the deposit of the instrument of ratification with the African Union Commission, followed by domestication.
The Government has also launched the National Social Protection Policy 2026-2035, providing a framework for strengthening social protection and identifying older persons among vulnerable groups requiring attention.
At the international level, The Gambia is contributing to discourse on older people's rights through its membership of the UN Human Rights Council.
"These are important developments and deserve recognition. But they also mark the beginning of a new phase: a phase in which we turn commitments and policies into meaningful improvements in the everyday lives of older Gambians," ASI said.
ASI said Government cannot do this alone, noting that civil society, national institutions, communities and older people's organisations all have a role to play.
It welcomed work by the University of Senior Citizens (USC), with support from the National Human Rights Commission, to engage older persons directly through home visits in the Greater Banjul Area and raise awareness of their rights.
"Older people should not simply be the subjects of policies and programmes. They should be participants in shaping them," ASI said.
The organisation called on Gambians to listen to older people about what it is like to grow old in The Gambia today, what makes ageing difficult, what gives them joy and purpose, and what would make The Gambia a better place in which to grow old.
"Ageing is not somebody else's issue. We are all ageing. The younger person of today is the older person of tomorrow," ASI said, adding that creating an age-friendly society is about creating a society in which people of all ages can live and grow older with dignity.
"Because ageing is not just about getting older. It is about building a society in which all of us can grow older well."
