In an update dated 21 August 2026, the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe (WHO/Europe) indicated that the strategy “Ageing is living” for 2026-2030 is advancing towards consideration by the Regional Committee for Europe. The 76th session of the Committee takes place in Copenhagen from 27 to 29 October 2026. This contribution summarises the demographic data, the content of the strategy and the session programme, on the basis of WHO publications.
The demographic picture in the WHO European Region
The WHO European Region comprises 53 Member States. According to the WHO/Europe topic page on ageing, people aged 60 and over numbered 215 million in 2021; the estimate is 247 million for 2030 and over 300 million for 2050. Over the same horizon, the number of people aged 80 and over is expected to more than double.
The update of 21 August 2026 reports a projection expressed differently: by 2050 the population aged 60 and over would grow by around 50%, and the population aged 85 and over would more than double. The two sets of indicators use different age thresholds and are reported here separately, each to its own source.
The “Ageing is living” strategy 2026-2030
The full title of the document is “Ageing is living: a strategy for promoting a lifetime of health and well-being in the WHO European Region 2026-2030”. According to WHO/Europe, the strategy focuses on prevention and on transforming care, moving from fragmented services to integrated, person-centred pathways that span primary health care, rehabilitation, reablement, long-term care and palliative care.
Further priorities indicated include care workforce development, support for caregivers, sustainable financing, equity, age-friendly environments, innovation and data systems.
The drafting process began in January 2025 and involved 20 months of consultation, with more than 3,000 contributions gathered through public hearings, Member State consultations, civil society dialogues, an advisory committee of ten countries and ministerial discussions.
Long-term care
The WHO/Europe page on long-term care defines a long-term care system as all the organisations, people and actions aiming to promote, maintain or improve well-being, health and functional ability for individuals with limitations in intrinsic capacity. Strengthening such systems rests on three components: governance, leadership and information systems; sustainable financing and an adequately trained workforce; and organisation of service delivery and support for innovation.
Among the tools made available to Member States, WHO lists the “Country assessment framework for the integrated delivery of long-term care”, together with technical support for capacity building, national assessments and implementation.
The 76th session of the Regional Committee for Europe
According to the official session page, the Committee brings together in Copenhagen, from 27 to 29 October 2026, health ministers and high-level delegates from the 53 Member States of the Region, together with partners and civil society representatives. The technical day includes the “Ageing is living” strategy 2026-2030 and the “Roadmap for action on artificial intelligence in health” (2026-2033). The programme also lists a consultation on the noncommunicable disease strategy, with adoption planned for 2027, and a discussion of the regional mental health and well-being strategy 2027-2037, pending approval.
Items on the governance day also include expressions of interest for geographically dispersed offices on quality of care and patient safety, artificial intelligence, and the health and well-being economy.
On artificial intelligence in health, on 1 September 2026 WHO/Europe published the first report of its Knowledge Community on responsible AI in health, based on a five-week structured online dialogue (October-December 2025) with participants from 105 countries. The report identifies governance, data, validation, workforce capacity and patient and community participation as priority actions, and states that governance readiness, rather than speed of deployment, should be the measure of responsible progress. The document does not refer to the Roadmap or to the Regional Committee.
Outlook
The strategy is submitted for consideration by the Regional Committee at its session in late October 2026; at the time of writing the outcome is not available. Still to be defined are the arrangements for national implementation, the resources allocated to financing care and the care workforce, and the indicators by which progress over 2026-2030 will be measured. The information reported here is limited to what WHO/Europe has published and does not include session documents that were not consulted.
In dialogue with the 2030 Agenda
- Goal 3 (Good Health and Well-being). The strategy concerns health and well-being across the life course, from primary care to palliative care.
- Goal 10 (Reduced Inequalities). Equity is among the priorities indicated by WHO/Europe for the strategy.
- Goal 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities). Age-friendly environments are among the areas referred to in the document.
Sources
- WHO/Europe, 76th session of the Regional Committee for Europe (27-29 October 2026)
- WHO/Europe, Towards healthier lives at every age: Ageing is living advances towards adoption (21 August 2026)
- WHO/Europe, Ageing: strengthening long-term care systems
- WHO/Europe, Progress on AI in health should be determined by strength of governance, WHO forum urges (1 September 2026)
