The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has called on Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to prioritize the region’s growing elderly population by building a more inclusive and sustainable silver economy.

“The silver economy is sometimes thought a niche market for aging populations. In reality, it is far bigger than that,” DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian said in his keynote address during the opening of the ASEAN High-Level Forum on Unlocking the Silver Economy on Wednesday at the Philippine International Convention Center.

“It is about redesigning society itself to ensure that longevity becomes an economic and social advantage not a source of exclusion. It is about whether ASEAN can become a region where longer life expectancy is matched by longer opportunity, longer dignity, and longer participation,” he said.

Gatchalian, who also serves as the current ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) chair, noted that the region is experiencing a major demographic shift, with over 14.8 percent of ASEAN’s population expected to be aged 60 and above by 2030.

By 2035, the number of senior citizens in the region is projected to reach 127 million.

While longer life expectancy is worth celebrating, the DSWD chief noted that it also presents challenges as many older persons in ASEAN remain vulnerable due to rising cost of living, digital exclusion, gender inequality and lack of retirement savings, among others.

“ASEAN has a unique advantage. We are at a stage where many member states can plan ahead. We have the opportunity to build systems before crises fully emerge. And importantly, ASEAN already possesses the cultural foundations needed for more humane models of aging: strong family structures, community solidarity, and traditions of intergenerational support,” he said.

“Our task now is to modernize these strengths without losing them – to combine technology with humanity, efficiency with dignity, economic growth with social cohesion,” Gatchalian said.

The ASCC chair likewise underscored the necessity for regional cooperation to guarantee that older persons live safely, productively, independently and with dignity within their communities through investing in the silver economy.

“The demographic future of our region demands cooperation across borders and across sectors. Governments alone cannot build the silver economy. The private sector will drive innovation. Academia will generate evidence. Civil society will safeguard inclusion and human dignity. Development partners will help strengthen capacity and financing. Older persons themselves must remain at the center, not merely as beneficiaries, but as co-creators of policy,” the DSWD chief said.

Prioritizing investment in the silver economy to promote active aging is among the DSWD’s priorities under its chairship of the 2026 ASEAN-ASCC Council.

The forum is conducted by the DSWD in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund, United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific,p and the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia.

Aside from the Philippines, other ASEAN members include Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Vietnam. (PNA)