Bangkok, 24–25 February 2025: ERIA co-hosted the ‘ASEAN Centre for Active Ageing and Innovation (ACAI) Consultative Meeting on the 5-Year Strategic Plan & the 13th Meeting of Governing Board’ in Bangkok, Thailand. ACAI, established by ASEAN member states, aims to empower and enhance ageing societies through innovation and prepare the region for future demographic shifts. The meetings gathered leading stakeholders from across to finalise the five-year strategic plan and address the pressing challenges and opportunities associated with rapid ageing in the region.

ACAI Consultative Meeting on the Five-Year Strategic Plan

Session 1: Opening

Dr Suwit Wibulpolprasert, ACAI Governing Board Chair, opened the meeting, followed by remarks from Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health (MOPH), WHO Thailand, and ERIA, with Sarah K. Abe, Manager of Healthcare Services, representing ERIA.

Session 2: ACAI’s Five-Year Strategic Plan and Inputs from Partners

Experts from academia, governments, NGOs, and the private sector shared insights on ageing innovation in ASEAN:

• Dr Abhijit Visaria from the UNFPA discussed active ageing initiatives, including the National Transfer Accounts (NTA) framework to measure economic flows between age groups.
• Dr Olivia Nieveras from WHO Thailand outlined WHO’s ageing programmes in ASEAN.
• Meredith Wyse from the Asian Development Bank presented the 2024 Asian Development Policy Report, including case studies and retirement surveys in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Tonga.
• Masashi Suzuki from Abeam Consulting discussed trends in Asia’s nursing care industry, its role as part of the local infrastructure, and technologies for dementia care in Japan.

Session 3: Active Ageing in ASEAN – Ways Forward

• Suguru Ito from ACAI introduced the five-year strategic plan to advance active ageing in ASEAN, strengthen regional collaboration for effective programmes and sustainable funding mechanisms, and position ACAI as a regional platform, innovation hub, a centre of excellence, and a financially sustainable organisation.
• Eduardo Klien from the HelpAge International discussed the need for dynamic policies on HelpAge’s role in supporting and advocating for ageing populations.
• Dr Mikiko Kanda from WHO-WPRO highlighted three points to promote healthy ageing in societies: transforming a ‘sick’ care system to ‘health’ care system, taking evidence-based early action, and fostering partnerships amongst member states.
• Dr Reiko Hayashi from the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research (IPSS) in Japan presented the ASEAN Active Ageing Index (AAAI) tool to monitor the progress of ACAI’s five-year strategic plan.
• Yasuhiko Saito, Senior Research Fellow at ERIA, and Asst Prof. Jasper Tromp from the National University of Singapore presented findings from their respective longitudinal and cohort studies on ageing and health in Asia.
• Dr Somsak Akksilp, ACAI Executive Director, emphasised the importance of these studies in contributing to evidence-based policy recommendations for ageing society. He also expressed his gratitude to ERIA for initiating and supporting the studies and looked forward to further collaboration.

• Vilawan Luankongsomchit from the Health Intervention & Technology Assessment Program (HITAP) and Yasuhiko Saito discussed policy recommendations to promote happy retirement and the expected average of healthy working life expectancy amongst older adults. The concept of a ‘happy retirement’ – which is shaped by good physical and mental health, financial and environmental security, and participation in work and social activities – forms the basis of a research framework for ASEAN.
• Prasert Assantachai from Mahidol University’s Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital shared a comprehensive health continuum health for ageing, covering health promotion, acute care, intermediate care, community care, and palliative care. He also shared recommendations in four action areas from the ACAI expert meeting last year: combating ageism, age-friendly environments, integrated care for older adults, and long-term care for older people.

Meeting of ACAI Governing Board & Partners

Dr Kyaw Min Soe, Head of Policy Advocacy and Capacity Building, outlined key principles for collaboration between ACAI and its partners. The ACAI governing board highlighted ACAI’s role as a connector/catalyst, knowledge hub, facilitator of capacity building programmes, and evaluator.

Partners shared their work on active ageing, provided feedback on ACAI’s strategy, and discussed potential support. On behalf of ERIA, Dr Liem Nguyen and Dr Sarah Abe introduced the institute and its works on active ageing, offered recommendations to strengthen ACAI’s strategy, and reaffirmed ERIA’s commitment to support ACAI.

External links related to the event

1. ASEAN Centre for Active Ageing and Innovation (ACAI) holds a Networking Dialogue at the ASEAN Headquarters
2. Promoting health and well-being of older persons: WHO’s support to ASEAN Member States