Becoming Age-Friendly
The World Health Organization and the
Age-Friendly Initiative
The WHO Global Network
of Age-Friendly
Cities and Communities
As a response to global population aging, the World Health Organization established the Global Network of Age-friendly Cities and Communities in 2010 to connect organizations worldwide with the common vision of making their community a great place to grow old in. It focuses on action at the local level that fosters the full participation of older people in community life and promotes healthy and active aging. Cities and communities join the Network with a commitment to become more age-friendly and to share their experience, achievements and lessons learned with others. The Global Network of Age-friendly Cities and Communities provides a global platform for information exchange, mutual learning and support. Membership is not a certification of age-friendliness. Rather, it reflects cities’ commitment to listen to the needs of their aging population, assess and monitor their age-friendliness and work collaboratively with older people and across sectors to create accessible physical environments, inclusive social environments, and an enabling service infrastructure.