Statement Issued by the National Centre for Human Rights
On the Occasion of the International Day of Older Persons
The world celebrates on the first day of October each year the International Day of Older Persons, as the United Nations General Assembly, in its resolution 45/106 of 14 December 1990, declared 1 October as the International Day of Older Persons. This declaration came following the International Plan of Action, which had been adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 37/51 of 3 December 1982, with the aim of highlighting the rights of older persons, raising awareness about them, combating neglect, abuse, and violence against the elderly, recognizing the diverse contributions of caregivers, and emphasizing the importance of protecting the human rights of both caregivers and recipients of care, as well as respecting the dignity, beliefs, needs, and privacy of older persons. Since the commencement of its work on 1 June 2003, the National Centre for Human Rights has monitored and paid great attention to the rights of older persons, considering them among the groups most in need of protection.
In this regard, the Centre affirms Article 6 of the Jordanian Constitution, which guarantees the principle of equality in rights and duties among all Jordanians regardless of age. Paragraph five of the same article affirms that the law protects the rights of older persons and prohibits abuse and exploitation. The issuance of the Social Development Law of 2024 included identifying groups requiring care and protection, such as the elderly and the homeless, as well as specifying the procedures for licensing social care institutions and homes, and supervising and monitoring them, including nursing homes. The Centre also commends the issuance of the Regulation for Licensing Nursing Homes and their Private Clubs No. (98) of 2024, which strengthens the rights and conditions of older persons, enhances social protection guarantees, and protects them from violence. The regulation stipulates revoking the license of any institution if it commits a serious violation related to the safety and security of beneficiaries, including exposure to violence, harassment, or sexual assault. In addition, the Instructions for the Use and Spending from the Elderly Care Fund of 2022, the issuance of the Jordanian National Strategy for Older Persons (2025–2027), the establishment of a day club for the elderly in Amman, the expansion of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line and its provision free of charge for those aged 65 and above, and its accessibility for older persons with disabilities, as well as the formation of a committee to implement the “Amman Age-Friendly City” project, are among the developments reflecting the continued efforts to care for this group by the Centre and relevant stakeholders.
The National Centre believes in the necessity of enhancing Jordan’s role in leading the drafting of an international convention on the rights of older persons, similar to other international conventions concerning groups most in need of protection. It further calls for adopting a dedicated law for older persons, enhancing health care services tailored to them, providing specialized geriatrics staff, establishing government-run day clubs for the elderly across all governorates of the Kingdom, and building a database and classified statistics that take into account gender, age, disability, and health, social, and economic conditions. These statistics should serve as a foundation for the necessary interventions within the framework of protecting the rights of older persons. The Centre also stresses the importance of implementing specialized programs on the rights of older persons, enhancing the role of the media in raising awareness of their rights, continuing to provide accessibility arrangements in hospitals, health centers, polling centers, and elsewhere, and involving older persons in strategies and plans related to development goals. Moreover, the Centre emphasizes the adoption of comprehensive programs at the official and social levels to integrate older persons into social and cultural life, promote a culture of volunteerism to serve them or benefit from their expertise, and adopt programs that encourage businesses and the private sector to shoulder part of their social responsibility by providing material, moral, psychological, social, and legal support to nursing homes.
