In this session, ministers and other high-level government representatives from Europe and Central Asia, along with prominent thought leaders, will offer perspectives on what challenges and opportunities countries are encountering in addressing demographic change with a view to reducing inequalities, ensuring sustainable growth, strengthening human capital, and expanding opportunities for all. READ MORE
Panel discussion to launch the Demographic Resilience Expo, an entirely virtual space where participants from government, civil society, academia and international organizations have the opportunity to showcase, browse and network around good practices and promising initiatives related to addressing demographic change. The Expo serves to exchange knowledge and experience for adaptation and replication in other countries. READ MORE
Government representatives and prominent thought leaders will explore the interplay between demography and democracy, and discuss how demographic change can be an opportunity for making democracies stronger and more inclusive. READ MORE
Populations across Europe and Central Asia are ageing rapidly, and many countries are struggling to adapt to this reality. This session will showcase successful initiatives to respond to, and manage, population ageing, and discuss new ways of creating societies for all ages that foster the inclusion of older people, and help countries realize the longevity dividend. READ MORE
Virtually all countries in Europe have fertility rates below replacement level. Fertility rates reflect choices that people make about their lives. When choices are affected by barriers that people face in having the number of children they want, a variety of policies can help close the gap between fertility intention and actual fertility levels. This session focuses on recent trends in fertility rates and evidence-based examples of what governments can do to help people have the number of children they want. READ MORE
Improving gender equality and introducing gender-responsive family policies has emerged in recent years as a key building block in developing comprehensive responses to demographic change. The session will discuss the way gender equality and demographic change interact. It will also identify innovative, workable solutions for ensuring that working parents – men and women – are able to combine family and career. READ MORE
Enabling young people to fulfil their potential is key for countries to prosper in the context of demographic change. Yet many young people are excluded from the labour market and political life, and millions, especially in East and Southeast Europe, see little future in their own country. This session will focus on young people and their aspirations, and will highlight successful measures aimed at building young people’s confidence in their future. READ MORE
Across Europe and Central Asia, people leave rural areas to look for opportunities in urban centres or abroad, making life harder for the mostly older people staying behind and making it costly to maintain infrastructure and services in sparsely populated areas. The session will showcase promising examples of rural revitalization and strategies to successfully adapt to smaller populations in areas with limited opportunities for revitalization. READ MORE
Demographic shifts such as population ageing and population decrease have put major strains on the sustainability of social systems, infrastructure and services. This session will provide an opportunity to look at lessons learned from countries with longer experience in adapting social and other systems to demographic change, and discuss the implications of new data and evidence. READ MORE
Organized under the auspices of the President of Bulgaria
