Background

Promoting Active Ageing in Hong Kong

The age profile of Hong Kong residents, like that of other developed countries, is getting progressively older – as birth rates fall and as healthier life-styles and medical interventions prolong life-spans. Older adults are commonly healthier, more active, and better able to contribute to their own well-being and to that of society as a whole than they have been in the past. Research studies have also shown us the very positive effects on health and longevity of continued active engagement in older age – especially of engagement in continued learning.

Mindful of these realities, The Labour and Welfare Bureau of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples’ Republic of China and the Elderly Commission have been promoting ‘active ageing’. Among various programmes, the Elder Academy Scheme aims to facilitate opportunities for older residents to continue active engagement as learners.

Under the Elder Academy Scheme, older residents are encouraged to continue active engagement as learners through the establishment of a network of Elder Academies across Hong Kong.

The role of the Labour and Welfare Bureau and the Elderly Commission in the formation of Elder Academies is primarily that of a facilitator – promoting the concept, encouraging a range of suitable organizations to establish Elder Academies, providing guidelines, and giving advice – while also providing initial seed funding where appropriate to support the establishment of Elder Academies in primary and secondary schools, as well as in tertiary institutions.

Elder Academies in Hong Kong

Initially, Elder academies in Hong Kong were established in primary and secondary schools with the collaboration of the welfare organizations. Most recently, the Elderly Commission has been working with tertiary education providers to establish a range of Elder Academies at the tertiary level. The Elder Academy in the Education University of Hong Kong was established in 2008 as part of that initiative.

The core function of Elder Academies in Hong Kong is to promote active ageing so that elders can enjoy fruitful lives through engaging in learning, the objectives being to encourage elders to continue to engage in learning, maintain the physical and mental well-being of elders, foster a sense of worthiness among elders, promote inter-generational harmony, strengthen civic education, and promote cross-sectoral collaboration.

The importance of inter-generational learning in those objectives is encouraging Elder Academies to allow elderly enrolments as much as possible into the on-going educational activities of the host institution. However, in some cases, activities of particular interest to elderly learners are being provided.

Learning opportunities made available by Elder Academies are intended to be provided at minimal cost to the elderly. While tertiary institutions funded by the University Grants Committee have a duty to avoid cross-subsidization of enrolments from UGC funds, they are, nevertheless, able to provide support for elderly enrolments in other ways. The possibilities for such support are being actively explored by Elder Academies in this sector, with the hope that a wider range of learning opportunities may be made more readily available in the near future.