South-south Conference on Demography and Population Ageing

South-south Conference on Demography and Population Ageing (SSCDPA2018)
4 – 5 December 2018
The Boulevard Hotel Kuala Lumpur

Background

According to the World Population Prospects 2017, the global population will reach 7.8 billion in 2020, and 9.4% of the total are older persons aged 65 years or over. Out of the 729.4 million older persons aged 65 years or over in 2020, 66.3% are found in less and least developed regions. Although population in the global south are younger in general, but the rate of ageing is much faster and far more rapid than the past as experienced by the more developed countries. As shown in Table 1, with the exception of lower-middle-income and low-income countries, the young population under the age of 20 is expected to decline over the next fifty years. How are developing and less developed countries coping with the demographic transitions in a shrinking, increasingly connected world?

Table 1. Population Age Structure by Levels of Development, 1960, 2010 & 2060

 

In 2018, the Titchfield City Group on Ageing-related Statistics and Age-disaggregated Data was established. Endorsed by the UN’s Statistics Commission, the Group aims to develop standardized tools and methods for producing data disaggregated by age and to encourage countries to do so. As the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) indicators traverse all age groups, population and development issues take on a new level of significance as countries around the world balance economic growth with health and social protection needs of their people. 2019 marks the 25th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) held in Cairo in 1994, south-south countries in different regions need to cooperate and share their national experiences to better understand how dynamics of the demographic transition has influenced and affected their Societies as a whole.

With the support of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Government of Malaysia, the Population Studies Unit, UM, Malaysian Research Institute on Ageing, UPM and the Gerontological Association of Malaysia is organizing a 2-day conference on demography and population ageing in south-south countries. The 2-day event will feature 17 keynote, plenary and invited paper presentations, as well as a forum on population and development issues by regional and international stakeholders.

 

Objectives

The conference aims to:

1. Share the latest information on demography and population ageing in developing countries;
2. Promote open discussions on the population issues and challenges faced by South-south countries, and;
3. Strengthen regional and international cooperation and collaboration on population and development matters to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)