On October 1, the world marked the UN International Day of Older Persons. For many in Pakistan, this may seem like a distant issue, as our public discourse remains dominated by the celebrated youth bulge. Yet the numbers tell a different story. More than 13 million Pakistanis are already aged 60 and above. By 2050, this number will rise to 36 million — a population larger than today’s Karachi, Lahore, and Faisalabad combined.
While this demographic shift is often discussed in terms of rising costs and dependency, there is another way to look at it. Around the world, policymakers and businesses are focusing on the “silver economy” — the economic and social value generated by older persons. For Pakistan, which faces fiscal pressures and limited resources, embracing the silver economy early could be a vital opportunity.
### Older People: More Than Dependents
Older people are not just dependents. They are living repositories of skills, knowledge, and experience. They are also active consumers with needs that generate demand for new goods and services. Many are capable of extending their working lives, starting small businesses, mentoring younger workers, and caring for grandchildren in ways that allow mothers to join the labour force.
In other words, ageing can be reimagined not as a looming social burden, but as an economic driver that strengthens families, communities, and markets.
### Active Ageing: A Phase of Renewal and Contribution
This is not just theory. In earlier writings on active and healthy ageing, I emphasized that ageing should not be equated with inevitable decline. It can also be a phase of renewal, creativity, and contribution.
Across Pakistan, retired teachers still tutor neighborhood children, former engineers advise young entrepreneurs, and grandparents sustain family structures by providing unpaid care. These roles are often invisible in GDP figures, but their contribution is undeniable. Economists call this “intergenerational value creation” — a process where older persons transmit skills, stabilize communities, and give younger generations a better chance to succeed.
Recognizing this is not about charity; it is about smart economics.
### Lessons from Abroad: Policies That Unlock Potential
Experiences abroad show that the silver economy can be nurtured with policies and investments that unlock these hidden contributions. Germany and Japan, for example, encourage phased retirement, allowing older workers to gradually move to part-time or flexible roles instead of facing an abrupt exit from the labour force. This approach not only retains expertise within companies but also reduces pension burdens.
Some governments offer tax incentives to firms that retain or rehire older employees. In Singapore, re-skilling programs and digital literacy classes keep older workers employable, while in the European Union, lifelong learning vouchers are available even later in life. Mexico’s non-contributory pension and Brazil’s micro-pension schemes show how developing countries can guarantee minimum income security, even for those who spent their lives in informal work.
### Opportunities for Pakistan
These examples hold valuable lessons for Pakistan. We already have a modest initiative—the Ehsaas Ba-Himmat Buzurg programme—which provides cash support to older persons. But coverage is thin, benefits are limited, and inflation has eroded their value.
Expanding this programme into a universal old-age allowance indexed to the cost of living could drastically reduce vulnerability and inject steady purchasing power into local economies. Every rupee transferred to older people tends to circulate quickly into neighborhood shops, medicines, or school fees for grandchildren. Social protection for seniors is not dead weight; it is stimulus for communities.
### The Silver Economy: Market Potential and Innovation
The silver economy also extends to markets. Across Asia and Europe, industries from healthcare to housing, and from financial services to tourism, are already adapting to the needs of older consumers. Assistive devices, telehealth, senior-friendly housing, and leisure services are booming sectors, often supported by grants, standards, and public-private partnerships.
For Pakistan, where entrepreneurship and small business are vibrant, this is a chance to create new jobs while meeting an inevitable demand. Imagine low-cost hearing aids manufactured locally, age-friendly housing projects in expanding urban centers, or digital services designed for older users. These are not just welfare initiatives; they are market opportunities waiting for investors.
### Tackling Ageism: Changing Workplace Norms
Another critical lesson from abroad is the importance of tackling ageism. Despite cultural reverence for elders, Pakistani workplaces often treat older employees as expendable. Stereotypes about declining productivity or inflexibility lead to exclusion.
Yet research shows that intergenerational teams—combining the creativity of youth with the experience of seniors—are more innovative and stable. Campaigns in Europe and East Asia have reframed ageing as an asset. Similar national efforts in Pakistan could transform workplace norms.
A society that values its elders is also one that prepares better for its own future.
### Three Key Opportunities for Pakistan
Currently, Pakistan’s discourse remains heavily focused on dependency ratios and fiscal burdens. But three areas stand out as opportunities if we change our perspective:
1. **Harnessing Experience:** By enabling flexible work, second careers, and mentorship roles, we can tap into decades of accumulated knowledge that now often goes unused.
2. **Driving Demand:** Industries from healthcare to leisure could thrive by designing products and services tailored for older consumers.
3. **Reducing Dependency:** Preventive healthcare, lifelong learning, and digital inclusion can help seniors remain independent longer, reducing pressure on families and the state.
Each of these requires deliberate policy shifts but none is beyond reach.
### What a Policy Shift Might Look Like in Practice
A comprehensive approach would start with adopting a National Framework on Active and Healthy Ageing, anchored in principles of health, participation, and security. This would bring together ministries of health, labour, planning, and social protection to work toward a common vision.
Investing in skills and digital literacy programs for older adults through universities, vocational institutes, and NGOs is essential. Labour policies must be reformed to allow phased retirement, flexible contracts, and incentives for firms to rehire older workers.
Municipal governments should consider age-friendly infrastructure—such as accessible transport, safe walkways, housing adapted to mobility needs, and community spaces that keep seniors engaged.
Finally, Pakistan should encourage silver markets by supporting entrepreneurship in assistive technologies, healthcare services, and micro-pensions.
### Beyond Ageing: Towards an Inclusive and Resilient Economy
These reforms are not just about older persons; they are about making Pakistan’s economy more inclusive, resilient, and dynamic. They can reduce fiscal stress, generate new markets, and strengthen intergenerational solidarity.
Above all, they can help us see ageing not as decline but as a second opportunity—for individuals and for the nation.
### Embracing the Future
As the UN International Day of Older Persons reminds us, societies everywhere are facing this demographic shift. The choice is whether to treat it as a crisis or an opportunity.
For Pakistan, still a young nation but rapidly ageing, the silver economy offers a chance to get ahead of the curve. We can continue to view older people as dependents to be carried, or we can recognize them as workers, mentors, innovators, and consumers whose contributions can lift us all.
The dividends of embracing the latter approach will not only improve the lives of our seniors but also strengthen our economy and social fabric.
The promise of the silver economy lies before us. Whether we seize it depends on how boldly we are willing to reimagine ageing.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/1348591-ageing-as-opportunity
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