EP 61 | Building a Senior Citizen Friendly Kerala: Challenges and Innovations | Policy Beyond Politics

Kerala has a rapidly ageing population, with the proportion of senior citizens (aged 60 and above) projected to reach 22.8% by 2036, significantly higher than the national average of 15%. This demographic shift poses challenges for the state in terms of providing adequate care and support for its elderly population. As Kerala grapples with the challenges of a rapidly ageing population, a comprehensive and multifaceted approach involving the government, civil society, and senior citizen organisations is necessary to ensure the well-being and dignity of its senior citizens.

The episode aims to understand the challenges and explore innovative solutions emphasising the importance of a multi-faceted approach to address the increasing ageing population of the state.

The episode discusses the increasing ageing population of the state with special focus on Kerala’s senior citizen policy, this will be featured as part of the “health”, “economy”,and “governance and law” research areas of CPPR.

Speaker: Chandana Rajashekaran- Research Officer at the Center for Management Development, Trivandrum, leading a team that provides research support for policy development.

Moderator: Anu Anna Jo, Senior Research Associate, CPPR.

KEY DISCUSSION POINTS

1. Understanding and major learnings with regard to the State’s policy of 2013.
2. Importance of promoting social security net at a very young age.
3. Tackling the twin problem of migration and care economy.
4. Data availability and use of data in framing the policies.