A person born today in Europe has a 50 per cent chance to become 100 years old, and in some countries such as Japan the probability is even higher. However, this is not an issue that only involves advanced economies. For instance, life expectancy in Africa has grown very fast and now stands at almost 65 years. As a consequence, workforces are also ageing, either because people want to work longer or because they have to in order to make ends meet.

Nonetheless, labour force participation rates for older people are still the lowest of all age groups all over the world, indicating that we don't use the potential of older workers in a way that ageing societies need to. Low participation rates are a particular issue for women, adding in many cases to growing old age poverty amongst women.

In order to effectively respond to this demographic transition, it is first of all important to understand how this affects the labour market and specific sectors (such as agriculture and the care sector, among others) of both advanced and emerging countries. Secondly, it is key to highlight the potential opportunities of ageing societies for labour markets.

This course, organized by the Employment Policy and Analysis Programme of the ITCILO in collaboration with the Employment Policy Department of the ILO, will analyse both the macro and micro aspects of ageing trends and will provide participants with insights on how to analyse the trend and its implications for societies and what type of policies are needed to support inclusive societies that take into account the need for intergenerational justice linked to labour markets, workplaces and societies as a whole. In doing so, the course will draw on the latest ILO research and countries' experiences, with a view to raising awareness among policy makers, social partners and the general public on the issues related to ageing workforces within ageing societies.