On 14 December 1990, the United Nations General Assembly designated October 1 as the International Day of Older Persons. In 1991, the General Assembly adopted the United Nations Principles for Older Persons. In 2002, the Second World Assembly on Aging adopted the Madrid International Plan of Action on Aging, to respond to the opportunities and challenges of population aging in the 21st century and to promote the development of a society for all ages.
The composition of the world population has changed dramatically in recent decades. Between 1950 and 2010, life expectancy worldwide rose from 46 to 68 years. Globally, there were 703 million persons aged 65 or over in 2019. The region of Eastern and South-Eastern Asia was home to the largest number of older persons (261 million), followed by Europe and Northern America (over 200 million).