It is a pleasure to open this conference, and to welcome you – Excellencies, CM Presidency, ladies and gentlemen, both in person and online, all sharing a common purpose: ensuring Inclusive and Sustainable Care for Older Persons.
We meet at a decisive moment as Europe demographic landscape is changing rapidly. By 2050, almost one in three Europeans will be over 65, reaching more than 134.5 million. This transformation affects not only our health and social systems and our economies but also our societies and democracies.
It challenges us to rethink how we design our care systems, how we invest our human and financial resources, and how we sustain solidarity between generations.
For the Council of Europe, the response lies at the heart of its mission – the protection of human rights and the principle that no one should be left behind.
Through the European Social Charter and its article 23 which calls for protection and participation of older persons; through the European Court of Human Rights caselaw which ensures that care and dignity are not compromised; and through the work of our intergovernmental committees and notably the Steering Committee for Human Right, the Parliamentary Assembly and the Congress, which address inclusion, equality, and health in an integrated way.
This work is complemented by the Council of Europe Development Bank, which turns these standards into concrete action, financing projects in relevant key priority areas: health and social care infrastructure, affordable housing, inclusion programmes for persons with disabilities, education and employment.
Our discussions today build on broader international commitments — including the Doha Political Declaration adopted during the Second World Summit for Social Development in November 2025 which emphasises that health and social protection are fundamental rights, not privileges that are essential for human dignity development.
This conference aligns with the Council of Europe New Democratic Pact for Europe which remind us that the quality of care, the inclusiveness of our systems, and the fairness of our policies are central to the vitality of our democracies.
It also connects with our forward-looking High-Level Conference on Social Rights to be held on 18–19 March 2026 in Chisinau under the Moldovan Presidency which will provide an important platform to reaffirm commitment to social rights, assess progress on Charter reform, and confront emerging social challenges.
The goal is clear: to build care systems that reflect the values we stand for.
Through the day, we will advance this shared vision by bringing together policy, legal, and financing perspectives and identifying tools already available — offering practical pathways to transform commitments into action.
A challenging objective, so I wish you a very productive and inspiring conference and thank you in advance for contributing to this exchange.
