Table of contents
- Introduction (this page)
- Methodological notice
- AGE Barometer - Austria
- AGE Barometer - Belgium
- AGE Barometer - Cyprus
Introduction
The overall objective of AGE Barometer is to publish every year an assessment of the socio-economic situation of older people across the EU and how this situation underpins the respect of their human rights. Annual assessments will be linked to the monitoring of key policy processes at EU and national levels in regards to ageing, such as the EU Pillar of Social Rights, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA).
Each new edition of AGE Barometer will be used by AGE and its member organisations as an advocacy tool, providing evidence on how the social realities and the respect of human rights in old age evolve in different countries. Our intention is not to make a classification of member states, but to provide a concise overview on how various reforms and legislations relating to ageing succeed in improving the quality of life in old age.
The 2018 edition of the AGE Barometer focusses on the following areas: gender equality, support to find employment, age-friendly workplaces, work-life balance, the fight against poverty and social exclusion and adequate income.
Rationale
The reference point for AGE Barometer is the European Pillar of Social Rights and its 18 principles (out of 20) which are directly relevant to older people. When assessing how national reforms and legislations in place reflect the principles set in the EU Pillar of Social Rights (Pillar), we will also look at other relevant policy processes i.e. 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the implementation of national governments’ engagements taken in the framework of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing. Important synergies exist between all those processes and it is important to link them all to AGE Barometer so that older people and their rights are fully part of these processes.
The structure of annual assessment which feeds the AGE Barometer is built around 18 key domains. Each domain is connected to corresponding principles from the Pillar of Social Rights, SDGs and MIPAA commitments. Each year, only 5 to 6 key domains will be monitored and assessed to provide a better focus and to make it possible for AGE and its members, who are not universities or think tanks, but civil society NGOs, to complete the exercise. After a cycle of three years (each annual assessment based on 6 new domains), a fourth year will be dedicated to cross-cutting analysis and formulation of policy recommendations.
Data sources
The data from the AGE Barometer is provided in two ways:
- Qualitative data: Feedback has been gathered at national level among AGE members. This is the more important part of this Barometer as it directly reflects the on-the-ground experience of AGE members with the living conditions of older persons.
- Quantitative data: This has been gathered using statistics collected by the European Union and its agencies (notably Eurofound), enabling cross-country comparisons in key domains. This part provides reliable and unbiased data.
