2012 is the European year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations in the European Union. This term refers to a social and individual practice whereby quality of life in old age can be improved. This does not only include economic activity and staying in the labour market but also active participation in social, cultural and civil life, as well as social reintegration.

The goal of year 2012 is to call attention to all the tasks that result from the increased and further increasing age of the population and are necessary to keep the sustainability of the support system in the future.

In order to strengthen families and improve the demographic situation – beside many other factors – there is a great necessity to recreate those family networks that support families with children in reconciling work with child-raising and building on the experience of the older generation and also make it possible for the grandparents’ older generation to receive care within the family.

The widespread exposition of the European Year’s programmes and objectives is intended to promote a change in approach about ageing and elderly people. We should raise awareness to the abilities of the older generations, whether talking about involvement in the labour market or voluntary work. The goal is to start a process that fills up ageing with new content. The other goal of the campaign year is to contribute to establishing a relevant ageing policy.

The programmes in Hungary were accepted by the government as part of the European Year. The programmes of the Ministry aim at promoting an active old age, intergenerational solidarity and a change in the approach of the society by highlighting the values and experience represented by elder people, strengthening communities, activity, learning, healthy lifestyle and emphasizing the role of persons and institutions who undertake generous work towards the elderly.

In pursuance of the above the Ministry announced two contests as early as the end of last year. The goal of the “Way of Life” contest was getting to know our parents’, grandparents’ life and era. More than 2500 people applied for the contest with their historical memoirs, their grandchildren cooperating with them in many cases.

The “Age-Fellow” contest aimed at strengthening communities of old people and opened the door to support cultural, educational, health and sport programs of pensioners’ clubs and associations. There were professional lectures, author-reader meetings, conferences, presentations, brochures, trips, community programmes, tradition preserving programmes, free time and sport activities, as well as different courses among the thousands of received applications.

Day of Generations

Looking after the elder generation is also related to family policy, as old people are parents, grandparents, great-grandparents themselves and this determines their everyday lives. Therefore, the Ministry organized a monumental open-air event called “Day of Generations” on 28 April 2012 at Millenáris Park which focused primarily on solidarity and cooperation between generations within the theme of active ageing.

Programmes of the European year in Hungary

(State Secretariat for Social, Family and Youth Affairs)