President Piñera and the First Lady launch a Citizens’ Council to work on proposals for improving the quality of life of senior citizens

The President of Chile, Sebastián Piñera, and the First Lady, Cecilia Morel, presided over a ceremony to launch the “Citizens’ Council for Senior Citizens”. It will meet twice a year and be chaired by the First Lady. It will be coordinated by the new Director of the National Service for Senior Citizens (Servicio Nacional del Adulto Mayor, Senama), Octavio Vergara. The Council aims to listen to members of the public and civil society and private organizations that actively work with senior citizens, and encourage them to collaborate in implementing a positive aging plan being prepared by the Government.

"I think that this Citizens’ Council is an excellent initiative because there is no better public policy than one that is drawn up while listening to those who will benefit from it," said the President. He was speaking from the Montt Varas Salon at La Moneda Palace, where he was accompanied by the Ministers of Social Development, Justice, Culture and Sport, in addition to senior citizens and the members of the Council, a cross-sector group of experts, academics and NGOs working to improve living conditions for senior citizens.

Meanwhile, the First Lady, Cecilia Morel, said that "along with children, senior citizens are at the heart of the priorities of the Government of the President, my husband, Sebastian Piñera. In order to create good public policies, it's vital to listen to people’s needs, problems and dreams. This is why we are setting up this opportunity for conversation, analysis and debate, so we can understand first-hand the concerns of our senior citizens."

The Government's commitment to Chile’s senior citizens is of urgent importance because the country is rapidly aging, and this situation imposes new challenges. For somebody born in Chile in 1950, life expectancy was 54.8 years, while the National Statistics Institute (INE) now projects that those born in 2020 will have a life expectancy of 80.2 years. Meanwhile, according to the 2015 National Socioeconomic Characterization Survey (CASEN), there are now more than 3 million senior citizens and, by 2025, they are expected to represent 20% of the population.

The President spoke of unilateral cuts in banking services for older people and said that this practice must end. Among the main problems reported are age discrimination and the difficulties in adapting to technological changes in the financial system. Moreover, senior citizens are often the victims of fraud or appropriation of their belongings, sometimes even by members of their own family.

The Government has announced measures to address this situation, which include terminating all age discrimination with respect to access to financial services; establishing fair and preferential access for senior citizens to all banking services; appointing special bank account executives to facilitate their access to the banking system over the phone or via the internet, and special help for the victims of fraud or exploitation by their own relatives.

"These three measures will ensure that our senior citizens have fair and equal access to the banking and financial system," concluded the President.

He also reaffirmed his commitment to improving pensions, particularly for three groups: women, the poorest and the middle class, along with preferential access to the AUGE healthcare system for senior citizens.

Council members

The Council is comprised of:

1         Jorge del Campo Balbontin: Chairman of a working group on the rights of senior citizens

2         José Troncoso Cisterna: Chairman of CUPEMCHI (a confederation of pensioners’ organizations)

3         Ramón Aguilar Vera: Chairman of CODISAM (a social leaders’ organization on matters regarding senior citizens)

4         Gladys Fernández: Representative from the "Marcha de los Bastones” movement (a senior citizens march entitled march of the walking sticks)

5         Homero Gac Espínola: Chairman of the Sociedad de Geriatría y Gerontología de Chile (association of geriatrics and gerontology)

6         Mario Noguer Fernández: National Coordinator for the senior citizens program of Church-run charity Caritas Chile

7         Consuelo Moreno Rodríguez: Executive Secretary of Red Mayor (civil society network related to senior citizens)

8         Marta Larraechea Bolivar: Instituto del Envejecimiento (institute related to aging)

9         Renato de la Cerda Etchevers: Chair of Cajas de Chile A.G.

10       Patricia Pupkin: Chair of the AMANOZ Foundation

11       Rosita Kornfeld Matte: Executive Director of Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile’s Center for Research into Old Age and Aging (CEVE)

12       Eleazar Vargas: Chair of the Federación de Uniones Comunales de Adulto Mayor (senior citizens federation of municipal associations of neighborhood committees)

13       Juana Silva Opazo: Santiago Oriente Geriatric Hospital Dr. Luis Tisné Brousse

14       Hugo Rivera Mérida: Pan American Health Organization

15       Pedro Paulo Marín Larraín: Geriatrician at the Universidad Católica

16       José Francisco Yurazseck Krebs: Chaplain for the charity Hogar de Cristo

17       Andrés Ariztía De Castro: Chaplain for Las Rosas Foundation

18       Sister Adelina Arroyo: Villa Padre Hurtado Foundation (María Irene Castillo attends on her behalf)