Almost twenty per cent of Romania's population is over sixty five and thirty eight per cent of seniors are at risk of poverty or social exclusion, MEP Victor Negrescu said in his message on Monday for the National Congress on Active Ageing.

Negrescu pointed out that as vice president of the European Parliament and coordinator of the European Strategy and Policy Analysis System he supported the production of the first large scale European study on intergenerational equity and its inclusion on the agenda of the European Commission.

'Urbanisation and digitalisation are accelerating and pressure on resources is constant. All these developments do not only change the structure of the population, they change the European social contract. Romania is at a critical point in this transformation. Almost twenty per cent of the population is over sixty five. The number of elderly people exceeds the number of children by more than one million and thirty eight per cent of seniors are at risk of poverty or social exclusion, the highest percentage in the European Union,' the MEP said.

According to him Europe is undergoing the most profound demographic change in recent decades. Societies are ageing, generations are being reshaped and pressure on the European social model is increasing.

The conclusions are clear, demographic changes are rapid and irreversible and differences between generations are deepening. Eighty one per cent of Europeans believe income gaps are too large. Only forty seven per cent believe they have equal opportunities. Seventy eight per cent call for greater investment in education, health and social protection. At European level the elderly dependency ratio will continue to rise until around the year twenty one hundred, the social democrat said.

He added that the situation in Romania is even more difficult in rural and isolated communities where doctors, transport, social infrastructure and access to digital services are lacking.

'Inequalities in access to digital services are becoming the fastest growing form of exclusion, particularly affecting older people. That is why I explicitly requested that the digitalisation of public services include measures against the exclusion of seniors and I promoted the European AI4People model with the protection of vulnerable groups at the centre of digital policies. At the European Parliament we are already working on a coherent framework. We are talking about the long term care strategy. We are also working on the European Plan to Combat Cancer and Cardiovascular Diseases, the EU4Health programme, the European Social Fund Plus and several initiatives for skills development and lifelong learning including for seniors,' Negrescu explained.

The MEP supported the development of a national strategy for active ageing with clear objectives in health, prevention, housing, mobility, digitalisation and community participation.

He also argued that it is necessary to create a national institution dedicated to active ageing to coordinate policies on health, labour, urban planning and digitalisation and involve older people in decision making.

'We are not talking about additional bureaucracy, we are talking about better coordination. We need a modern policy for active ageing and this means in practice for citizens real access to primary care, prevention, home care and community services. It also means valuing the experience of seniors in education, volunteering and mentoring. We are talking about inclusive digitalisation with training adapted to every age. This also translates into integrated social services with one stop shop models or programmes to combat loneliness, day centres and intergenerational activities,' Victor Negrescu said.

Europe needs a new social contract between generations based on fairness, dignity and solidarity, he stressed.

'Romania must be an active part of this change. The future is not measured only by the number of years lived but by their quality. Our responsibility is to offer every older person in towns, villages and isolated areas the conditions needed to remain active, independent and involved in the community,' he told those present.

The National Congress for Active Ageing is organised by the Romanian Institute for Active Ageing Association and takes place on Monday and Tuesday at the Palace of Parliament. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Irinela Visan; EN - writing by: Adina Panaitescu)