Page 15 - BPW-UK - E-news - Edition 125 - October 2024 - Completed_Neat

A message from

Dear colleagues,

As UN member states and civil society from across the European region meet to re-
view progress on the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, 30 years on, we are call-
ing on UK Government to an explicit focus on older women, who have long been over-
looked. Research launched this week by our colleagues at HelpAge International finds that,
shockingly, only 0.1 per cent of all gender equality focused spending on aid includes older
women.
I wrote a blog for LinkedIn on the topic: http://bit.ly/4eN32Sx Please share widely
with your contacts.
HelpAge will be hosting a virtual side event to the UNECE regional forum to explore
and discuss the research finding – invitation attached, please join us. You can find the
analysis here: Investing in Equality - HelpAge International
I would also like to take this opportunity to share with you our 5 Easy Actions pa-
per, within which we have included our recommendation on older women and main-
streamed our thinking on ageing and gender. This new briefing builds upon the five key
calls to action set out in our 2024 manifesto. It sets out clearly how the Government can
act immediately to improve the lives of older people around the world. These five easy ac-
tions will have far-reaching impact - not only for older people in low and middle-income
countries, but also their families, communities, economies, and wider societies.
We are calling on the UK Government to take these easy steps now:
State publicly that the UK Government supports the creation of a new United Na-
tions Convention on the Rights of Older Persons.
1. Include an explicit focus on older women in the UK Government’s commitment to wom-
en and girls.
2. Explicitly commit to tackling non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in low and middle-
income countries as part of the UK Government’s global health priorities.
3. Renew the UK Government’s pledge and commitment to ‘Leave No-One Behind’ as a
core part of achieving the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Commit to disaggregating data by sex, age and disability within the UK Government’s
work and that of its development partners.

Humanitarian crises in Gaza and Lebanon, Ukraine, and East Africa continue to il-
lustrate how older people, and particularly older women and older people with disabilities,
are affected in emergencies. It is crucial that older people are included in humanitarian
aid, human rights legislation and international policy making. By taking the above actions,
the UK can help create a safer, more prosperous world for everyone.
We are urging the Government to act on these recommendations without delay and
we think they will be useful for the FCDO review underway. To discuss how Age Interna-
tional can work with you to highlight and help implement our recommendation on older
women and other calls to action, please feel free to contact me on:
kate.horstead@ageinternational.org.uk.

Best wishes,
Kate Horstead (she/her)
Senior Policy Advisor, Age International
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