HISTORY AND MEANING OF INTERNATIONAL DAY OF OLDER PERSONS OCTOBER 1

           In 1982, the United Nations held the first World Congress on Aging in Austria, with the participation of more than 3,000 delegates from most countries in the world. The representative of Vietnam was Professor Pham Khue, Director of the Vietnam Institute of Gerontology. The conference approved the International Program of Action on Aging; recommended that governments and people of all countries pay attention to gradually solving the problems of the elderly, based on the specific circumstances of their countries, focusing on 6 areas: Health and nutrition, housing and environment, family, social services and protection, employment, and improving the understanding of the elderly about life. On December 14, 1990, the United Nations General Assembly voted to adopt October 1 every year as the International Day of Older Persons. The first International Day of Older Persons was held on October 1, 1991. The United Nations announcement clearly states: “The content and areas of activities on the International Day of Older Persons, depending on the conditions of each country, can refer to specific areas: The contributions of older persons in science; literature, art, sports and social development; useful activities within the family, community, school and business. In addition to praising contributions in many areas to the community, it is also necessary to mention the obligations of society and the community towards older persons, especially those who are facing difficulties in life due to old age and weakness”. The International Day of Older Persons is held annually to raise awareness of issues affecting older persons, it is also a day to recognize the contributions that older persons have made to society, and is also the focus of the United Nations Program on Ageing and organizations for the protection of older persons. The Party and State's attention to the elderly in Vietnam

Recognizing the importance of the elderly, the Vietnam Institute of Gerontology, under the direction of the Central Committee for Mass Mobilization, the Mobilization Committee for the establishment of the Vietnam Association of the Elderly was formed, consisting of 15 people. On September 24, 1994, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Khanh signed the decision to establish the Vietnam Association of the Elderly. After that, the Mobilization Committee convened the delegates of the elderly nationwide to hold the Congress to establish the Vietnam Association of the Elderly on May 9-10, 1995 (May 10 was later chosen as the anniversary of the Association's establishment). This is an opportunity for the whole society and families to recognize and respect the contributions of the elderly to the process of building and developing life; to care for, look after and protect the elderly in accordance with the national and contemporary traditions and ethics. Our Party and State have issued many policies and documents for the elderly to ensure their material and spiritual life, specifically: Directive No. 59-CT/TW dated September 27, 1995 on caring for the elderly of the Central Party Secretariat; Directive No. 117/TTg dated February 27, 1996 of the Prime Minister on caring for the elderly and supporting activities for the Vietnam Association of the Elderly; Ordinance on the Elderly No. 23/2000/PL-UBTVQH10 dated April 28, 2020 of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly; Decision No. 141/2004/QD-TTG dated August 5, 2004 of the Prime Minister on the establishment of the National Committee on the Elderly in Vietnam. The Law on the Elderly was passed by the National Assembly on November 23, 2009; The Labor Code issued on June 18, 2012 has a separate provision for elderly workers; Decree No. 13/2010/ND-CP dated February 27, 2010 of the Government amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 67/2007/ND-CP dated April 13, 2007 of the Government on policies to support social protection beneficiaries; Decree No. 06/2011/ND-CP dated January 14, 2011 of the Prime Minister promulgating detailed regulations and instructions for the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on the Elderly; Decision No. 1781/QD-TTg dated November 22, 2012 of the Prime Minister approving the National Action Program on the Elderly in Vietnam, period 2012-2020. On April 25, 2015, the Government issued Decision No. 544/QD-TTg to designate October as the “Action Month for the Elderly in Vietnam”. The Government established the National Committee for the Elderly in Vietnam; the Vietnam Association of the Elderly established the Steering Committee for the Action Month to advise, coordinate and implement activities related to the elderly. Every year, the National Committee for the Elderly in Vietnam launches the “Action Month for the Elderly in Vietnam” with the theme “Caring for and promoting the role of the elderly” to strengthen propaganda and raise awareness of Party committees at all levels, authorities, sectors, organizations, families, society and the elderly about the purpose and meaning of the Action Month; promote the care and promotion of the role of the elderly. In the 2013 Constitution, for the first time, the term “Elderly” was mentioned in Clause 2, Article 59 and Clause 3, Article 3, fully mentioning and affirming the goal of developing a social security system, ensuring equality and fairness for all members of society. From this highest legal basis, policies for the elderly have been mentioned and specified in many documents.