Baseline Assessment of Age-Friendly Cities Standards in Sharjah

Posted on March 25, 2018 by Sharjah in News

Baseline Assessment of Age-Friendly Cities Standards in Sharjah

Prepared by:

Department of Statistics and Community Development

30/07/2017

Speech of the higher follow-up Committee for Sharjah’s Membership in the Age-Friendly Cities Global Network

M/S Higher Follow-Up Committee for Sharjah’s Membership in the Age-Friendly Cities Global Network, pursuant to your letter addressed to Sharjah Department of Statistics and Community Development, related to conducting an analytical assessment study explaining extent of application by the institutions, and authorities to the global age-friendly cities standards guide. We are pleased to provide you with the first report, showing the outcomes reached through the workshops and meetings with the concerned institutions. Hoping that the report has covered the realistic services provided by the Emirate towards the elderly people as per the topics and standards of the age-friendly cities.

Department of Statistics and Community Development

Report Composing Team

We extend our sincere thanks and gratitude to all those who have contributed to the preparation of the preliminary assessment report for the Age-friendly Cities Standards in the Emirate of Sharjah.

Authors of the Report

Department of Statistics and Community Development

The Executive Office of the High Follow-Up Committee for Sharjah’s Membership in the Age-Friendly Cities Global Network

Members:

Bee’ah Company	Prevention and Safety Authority
Consultative council of Sharjah	Quarter Century Foundation
Department of Housing	Roads and Transport Authority
Directorate of Human Resources	Sharjah Chamber of Commerce & Industry
Directorate of Public Works	Sharjah Education Council
Directorate of town planning and survey	Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority
Districts and villages affairs department	Sharjah Government Media Bureau
Economic Development Department	Sharjah Institute for Heritage
E-Government Department	Sharjah Media Corporation
General Secretariat of the Executive Council	Sharjah Police Headquarters
Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department	Social Services Department

Summary

Assessing the city and its services is one of the most important tools used to measure its extent of progress, and determine its track in accordance with the highest international standards in order to achieve progress, growth and prosperity.

The Emirate of Sharjah has determined the standards for the age-friendly cities, in accordance with the guide issued by the World Health Organization within this scope. A preliminary assessment aimed at measuring and providing the services allocated to these groups that has been worked out through the study and analysis of the data that led to the following results:

* Identify 22 competent entities for all 189 standards through deliberation and agreement with the involved institutions and setting standards for them.

* Findings show that 92 of the required standards have been already applied in the Emirate, 75 standards require improvement and 15 standards are not available.

* Identify the largest percentage of the total standards that are found within the scope, which is 20% belonging to the Roads and Transport Authority, followed by 17% from Social Services Department, and Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department at 13%.

* 15 standards are not available in the Emirate of Sharjah, though they are applied in the government entities by their discretion without any required directives or laws.

* 7 standards are not applied in the Emirate of Sharjah, due to difference of culture, since they do not coincide with the local lifestyle of the Emirate. In addition to that, the absence of the entities concerned with some standards in the Emirate, or that they belong to private profit-making institutions, which are not subjected to the governmental institutions.

In light of the findings of the report, the following recommendations have been put forth:

* Highlighting the standards applied by the Emirate of Sharjah.

* Developing and improving the services provided by the concerned authorities within the standards of the age-friendly cities, especially those that need to be improved or are unavailable.

* Promulgation of the circulars by the General Secretariat of the Executive Council to legislate for some of the standards that are not available or not applicable in the Emirate of Sharjah.

* Reassess the situation after 6 months and issue two reports per year to learn about the latest developments and results of service improvements provided by the institutions.

Content of the Report

Contents

Introduction

Stages of the preliminary assessment of the standards of Sharjah as an age-friendly city

Distribution of the age-friendly cities’ standards by the concerned entities:

1. Most entities concerned with the age-friendly cities standards.

2. Most entities concerned with the age-friendly cities standards- as per each topic.

Availability of the age-friendly city standards in the Emirate of Sharjah

1. Distribution of the standards based on their availability in the Emirate of Sharjah.

2.Percentage distribution of the standards according to each topic

3. Explanation of the unavailable standards and the non-applicable ones.

Conclusion

References

Appendix

Introduction

Supported by His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qassimi, member of the Supreme Council of the Federation, Ruler of Sharjah, and in the framework of the vision of the government of Sharjah to make the Emirate a global model for the age-friendly cities; this vision, which was culminated by the Administrative Decision No. (2) of 2017, aims to prepare the Emirate for the global network of age-friendly cities and implement the standards, which will contribute to the development of infrastructure, programs, and services that target the elder citizens in the area. Hence, the High Follow-Up Committee for Sharjah’s membership in the Age-Friendly Cities Global Network, established by the Executive Council Decision No. (6) of 2017, has deemed it appropriate to cooperate with the Sharjah Department of Statistics and Community Development, and seek an analytical assessment report on the extent of availability of the total 189 standards in the government institutions. The report will also include the extent to which such institutions and entities apply these standards, which are developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) in the Emirate, through the issuance of two reports per year highlighting the updates, developments, and implementation of the standards.

The concept of the age-friendly city is based on the WHO framework for active ageing and expansion of the cities, through the entities encouragement of the idea of providing optimal health opportunities and ensuring the participation of all age groups. Especially the elderly citizens, in order to strengthen their sense of security, as well as to enhance their quality of life as their age progresses.

In practice, age-friendly cities develop their administrative structure and diverse services to be available and appropriate for all age groups, especially those who are older in age.

The issues voiced by all age groups, especially older people, and those who serve older people are highlighted in each of eight areas of urban living:

Outdoor spaces and buildings
Transportation
Housing
Community participation
Respect and social inclusion
Civic participation and employment
Communication and information
Community support and health services.

The world is rapidly ageing: The number of people aged 60 and above of the overall global population will double from 11% in 2006, to 22% by 2050. By then, the population will hold more senior citizens than children aged 0-14 for the first time in human history.

Stages of the preliminary assessment of Sharjah standards as an age-friendly city

The following are stages of assessment of the age-friendly cities standards by the Department of Statistics and Community Development in collaboration with the Executive Office of the High Committee.

The entity topics have been initially assigned at the office, so that the number of the concerned institutions is reduced as per the first preliminary assessment report from 59 to 22 institutions.
The entities has been determined for each standard, which was designated according to the approval of the entities on their assigned standards.
After contacting the institutions, 10 meetings have been set with each institute starting from Wednesday, 12 July 2017 up to Thursday, 20 July 2017.
The Statistics and Community Development Department team has sorted out the responses to assess them in collaboration with the Executive Office of the High Committee.
After deliberation, discussion and adoption of the data, we hereby submit to you the report prepared by the Executive Office and the Department of Statistics & Community Development.

Distribution of the concerned entities for the Age Friendly Cities standards.

Entities most concerned with the age-friendly city standards

Through analyzing the data after the relevant institution has identified each standard, we conclude the following:

The largest ratio of the total standards lies within the scope of the Roads and Transport Authority with 38 standards, representing 20% of the total standards, followed by the Department of Social Services with 32 standards by 17%, the Department of Municipal Affairs and Agriculture with 24 standards by 13%, and 46% of the standards are distributed among the other relevant government institutions.

*No.*	*Concerned Authorities*	*Repetition of standards*	*Percentage*
1	Roads and Transport Authority	38	20%
2	Social Services Department	32	17%
3	Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department	24	13%
4	Other Government Authorities	88	46%
5	Not applicable	7	4%

Entities most concerned with the age-friendly city standards- as per each topic:

The following table shows the breakdown of the topics according to the entities with highest standards in each topic.

The first topic includes the (Outdoor Spaces and Buildings), with a total of 33 standards distributed among 9 entities, in which the Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department obtained 40% of the standards, followed by the Roads and Transport Authority by 21%. As for the second topic, (Transportation), it obtained 37 standards distributed among five entities, indicating that the most standards belonged to the Road and Transportation Authority by 83% followed by Sharjah Police General Headquarters by 8%.

The third topic (Housing), included 28 standards that were distributed among 7 entities. The Housing Department, as well as the Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department, obtained 29%, being the most concerned entities with standards of this topic. The fourth topic, (Community Participation), has included 17 standards distributed among 5 entities, where the Department of Social Services had the most standards by 40%, followed by Sharjah Government Media Bureau by 24%.

The fifth topic, (Respect and Social Inclusion), included 13 standards distributed among 8 entities, in which the Advisory Council obtained 23% of the standards, while the Social Services Department, Sharjah Education Council, and Sharjah Heritage Institute obtained an equal rate of 15%. In the sixth topic, (Civil Participation and Employment), 31 standards are distributed among 7 entities, in which the share of the Directorate of Human Resources obtained the highest standards by 43% followed by the Social Services Department by 26%.

The seventh topic, (Communication and Information), included 16 standards distributed among 7 entities. With 24%, Sharjah Media Corporation had the largest percentage of the standards, followed by both the General Secretariat of the Executive Council as well as the Government of Sharjah Media Bureau, which had equal ratios of 19% each.

Lastly the eighth topic, (Community Support and Health Services), included 14 standards distributed among 5 entities; in which the most standards belonged to the Social Services Department at 72%, while the remaining standards were equally distributed among the four remaining entities at 7% each.

No. of the domain	The Topic	Competent Authority	Repetition	Percentage
1	Outdoor spaces and buildings	Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department	13	40%
1	Outdoor spaces and buildings	Roads and Transport Authority	7	21%
2	Transportation	Roads and Transport Authority	31	83%
2	Transportation	Sharjah Police General Headquarters	3	8%
3	Housing	Department of Housing	8	29%
3	Housing	Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department	8	29%
4	Community Participation	Social Services Department	7	40%
4	Community Participation	Sharjah Government Media Bureau	4	24%
5	Respect and Social Inclusion	Consultative council of Sharjah	3	23%
6	Civic Participation and Employment	Directory of Human Resources	13	43%
6	Civic Participation and Employment	Social Services Department	8	26%
7	Communication and Information	Sharjah Media Corporation	4	24%
		General Secretariat of the Executive Council	3	19%
		Sharjah Government Media Bureau	3	19%
8	Community Support and Health Services	Social Services Department	10	72%

* appendix1

Availability of the Age-Friendly City standards in the Emirate of Sharjah

Distribution of the standards based on its availability in the Emirate of Sharjah.

The following table shows the extent of the availability of the Age-Friendly City standards concerned with the eight-topics in the government entities in the Emirate of Sharjah, in terms of which require improvement, are not available, or are not applicable.

It is exhibited that a total of 92 standards out of 189 are available and can be measured in the Emirate of Sharjah , while 75 standards need improvement, 15 standards are not available, and the remaining 7 are not applicable.*

Domain No.	The Topic	Available	Needs Improvement	Not available	Not applicable
1	Outdoor Spaces and Buildings	9	22	2	0
2	Transportation	23	12	2	0
3	Housing	14	13	0	1
4	Community Participation	7	10	0	0
5	Respect and Social Inclusion	5	5	3	0
6	Civic Participation and Employment	17	6	4	4
7	Communication and Information	6	5	3	2
8	Community Support and Health Services	11	2	1	0
Total		92	75	15	7
Percentage total		48.7%	39.7%	7.9%	3.7%
Grand total			189

* appendix2

Percentage distribution of the availability of the standards as per each topic.

The following table shows the availability of the standards in the government entities as per each topic; and whether the standards are available, need improvement, or not applicable. It shows that 30% of the “Outdoor Spaces and Building” standards are available, while 64% need improvement, and 6% are unavailable. As for Transportation, 62% are available, 32% need improvement, and 5% are not available. As for the standards of Housing, 50% of the standards are available while 46% need improvement and 4% are not applicable. In regards to the standards of Community Participation, 41% of the standards are available and 59% need to be improved. Meanwhile, 38% of the standards of Respect and Social Inclusion are available, 38% need to be improved, and 23% are unavailable. The standards of the Civil Participation and Employment have a total of 55%that are available, 19% that need improvement, 13% that are unavailable, and 13% that are not applicable. The standards of Communications and Information have 38% that are available, 31%need to be improved, 19% unavailable, and 13% not applicable. Lastly, the standards of the Community Support and Health Services’ have a total of 79% available, 14% need improvement, and 7% not available. The not applicable and unavailable standards in the Emirate of Sharjah, shall later be discussed in further details.

No.	Topic	Available	Needs Improvement	Not available	Not applicable	Total
1	Outdoor Spaces and Buildings	30%	64%	6%	0%	100%
2	Transportation	62%	32%	5%	0%	100%
3	Housing	50%	46%	0%	4%	100%
4	Community Participation	41%	59%	0%	0%	100%
5	Respect and Social Inclusion	38%	38%	23%	0%	100%
6	Civic Participation and Employment	55%	19%	13%	13%	100%
7	Communication and Information	38%	31%	19%	13%	100%
8	Community Support and Health Services	79%	14%	7%	0%	100%

* Numbers at the bottom of the graph refer to the numbers of the topics.

Explanation of the unavailable and non- applicable standards

Unavailable Standards

There are 15 applicable standards under the supervision and authority of government entities, which have been currently noted without any measure for several reasons:

General reasons for unavailability of the standards:

The standard is applied in government institutions at their own discretion without any directives or laws provided.
After further discussion and deliberation by the entities, the adoption of standards which are currently being studied, fall within the tasks and duties assigned to them.

Unavailable standards

Domain. No.	The Topic	Standard Serial No.	Details of the Standard	The Entity
1	Outdoor Spaces and Buildings	14	Special measures for serving the elderly, such as separate queues or special service outlets assigned to them. Proposal: Promulgation of a circular by the responsible authorities to legislate activation of this standard	General Secretariat of the Executive Council of Government of Sharjah/ High Committee
1	Outdoor Spaces and Buildings	21	The buildings are characterized by comfortable seating in the resting areas. Proposal: Listed in the strategic plan.	Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department
2	Transportation	56	Taxis are affordable with reduction, subsidies or discounts for the elderly or low-income disabled people. Proposal: Listed in the strategic plan. Initiative allowing discounts for users of public transportation	Roads and Transport Authority
2	Transportation	65	Provision of affordable parking for the elderly. Proposal: Listed in the strategic plan. Provide free parking spaces for the elderly.	Roads and Transport Authority
5	Respect and Social Inclusion	117	Provision of public and commercial services, and products adapted to needs and preferences of the elderly. Proposal: Promulgation of a circular by the concerned authorities to legislate activation of this standard	General Secretariat of the Executive Council of the Government of Sharjah/ High Committee
5	Respect and Social Inclusion	123	Include education of ageing and elderly people in the primary and secondary school curriculum. Proposal: Listed in the strategic plan; “AlEbin Albar” for honoring parents.	Sharjah Education Council
5	Services Characterized by Respect and Inclusion	124	Involve the elderly people through local school activities with children and their parents. Proposal: Development of programs and interactive activities through Sharjah Eductaion Council among the elderly and students, and circulating it among all schools in the Emirate with regular monitoring.	Sharjah Education Council
6	Civil Participation and Employment	130	Developing the volunteering organizations well by forming their own infrastructure, developing their own training programs and recruiting their volunteers. Proposal: Establish a local authority to supervise the volunteering institutions that carry out the work in the Emirate.	Social Services Department
6	Civil Participation and Employment	140	Offers older people pre-retirement training opportunities Proposal: Develop programs that qualify older people to be engage and become employed in the private sector and raise their awareness on the businesses they can lead after retirement.	Directorate of Human Resources
6	Age-friendly Civil Participation and Employment	148	Inclusion of the elderly in the advisory authorities, boards of directors, and organizations. Proposal: Promulgation of a circular by the concerned authorities to legislate activation of this standard	General Secretariat of the Executive Council and Government of Sharjah
6	Age-friendly Civil Participation and Employment	153	Encourage employers and organizations to take into account the needs of the elderly workers Proposal: Promulgation of a circular by the responsible authorities to legislate activation of this standard.	Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry/ Economic Development Department
7	Age-friendly Communications and Informatics	167	Individuals in the public and commercial offices provide individual age-friendly services as requested Proposal: promulgation of a circular by the responsible authorities to legislate activation of this standard.	General Secretariat of the Executive Council/ High Committee
7	Communication and Information	170	Provide help with slow and clear speaking automated telephone answering services, and explain to callers how to repeat the message at any time. Proposal: promulgation of a circular by the responsible authorities to legislate activation of this standard.	General Secretariat of the Executive Council/ High Committee
7	Communication and Information	171	Give the option to callers to talk to an employee or leave a message to be contacted later on. Proposal: promulgation of a circular by the authorities responsible to legislate activation of this standard.	General Secretariat of the Executive Council/ High Committee
8	Communication and Information	180	Coordinate provision of individual services and characterize them with a minimum level of bureaucracy Proposal: promulgation of a circular by the concerned authorities to legislate activation of this standard.	General Secretariat of the Executive Council/ High Committee

Second: Non- Applicable Standards

There are seven (7) standards that are non- applicable in the Emirate for the following general reasons:

* Difference in the nature and environment of the origin of these standards, as they do not follow the local lifestyle of the Emirate of Sharjah.

* Some of the listed standards have no entity concerned within the Emirate.

* Private profit institutions or federal institutions implement some of the standards.

* There is no government institution in the Emirate that oversees the volunteer work.

* Some of the listed standards follow private institutions, not subject to governmental institutions.

* Some standards are subjected to desire and the ability of a person to control them, such as the electronic devices, mobile phones, radio, and television devices.

* Manufacturing specifications of the devices are subjected to accredited global standards and are not accessible to the local institutions.

Details of the non- applicable standards

*Domain No.*	The Topic	Topic components	Standard Serial No.	*Details of the Standard*
3	Housing	9. Living environment	98	Provide financial assistance for home safety measures. Reason: There is no authority concerned with such service in the Emirate.
6	Civil Participation and Employment	Employment options	137	There are programs and agencies to recruit the elderly people. Reason: Employment agencies are private institutions that are not subject to the directorate of human resources
6	Civil Participation and Employment	3. Training	142	Volunteer organizations provide training for their jobs. Reason: Volunteer activities follow governmental institutions and no local institution oversees them
6	Civil Participation and Employment	4. Accessibility	146	No older person employee is asked to participate in extra pay or voluntary work. Reason: not adapted
6	Civil Participation and Employment	6. Valued contributions	154	Promoting benefits of employing older people among the employers. Reason: Currently not available but a proposal shall be raised by the Economic Development Department, Sharjah Chamber of Commerce & Industry for future activation of the standard.
7	Communication and Information	5. Automated communications and devices	172	Equip electronic devices, such as mobile phones, radios, televisions, automated bank outlets and electronic card payment devices, with large-character buttons and screens. Reason: Smart devices are accessible to the user to control the font size. Reason: The manufacturing specifications of the devices are subject to universally approved standards that are out of our control.
7	Communication and Information	5. Automated communications and devices	173	Provide instructions for the automated telephone answering services to slowly and clearly explain to callers how to repeat the message at any time. Proposal: Promulgation of a circular by the responsible authorities to legislate activating of this standard

Conclusion

After completion of the preliminary assessment of the standards of the age-friendly cities in the Emirate of Sharjah in cooperation with the Executive Office of the High Follow-Up Committee for Sharjah’s Membership in the Age-Friendly Cities Global Network, with participation of the government entities in the Emirate of Sharjah several results have been concluded. The most important of which are the availability and implementation of the age-friendly city standards in the Emirate of Sharjah, theidentification of the responsible authorities of all 189 standards, and the identitidaction of the authorities with the most standards, where they have been found within scope of the Roads and Transport Authority, followed by the Department of Social Services and then the Department of Municipalities and Agriculture. Several standards are not available and not applicable in the Emirate for several reasons have also been explained in detail in the report.

On the basis of the findings and conclusions of the report, several recommendations: have been made such as:

* To develop and improve services provided by the responsible authorities falling within standards of the age-friendly cities; particularly the standards that need to be improved or are unavailable.

* Highlight the standards applied by the Emirate of Sharjah.

* Issuance of circulars by the General Secretariat of the Executive Council to legislate some standards falling under the scale of unavailable or non- applicable in the Emirate of Sharjah.

* Re-implementation of the assessment after 6 months and issue two reports each year to learn about the latest developments and results of the improvement in services provided by the authorities to serve standards of the age-friendly cities.

We hope that the attached report shall fulfill its mission to commensurate with this initiative, and shall reflect the fact that the Emirate of Sharjah and its governmental entities are ready to support, and promote continuity of membership of the Emirate of Sharjah in the global Network of age-friendly cities.

With our thanks and appreciation

References

Age-friendly Cities Guide, World Health Organization: Regional Office for the Middle East, issue of 2009
“Sharjah a healthy city” document,

Issued by the Department of Statistics and Community Development in collaboration with Sharjah Healthy City Program 2014

Unpublished data, Department of Statistics and Community Development

Appendix

First: A detailed report on each topic, showing the distribution of frequency of the standards descending according to the responsible authorities as shown below:

Topic 1: Outdoors Spaces and Buildings

*Competent Authority*	*Repetition*	*Percentage*
Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department	13	40%
Roads and Transport Authority	7	21%
Sharjah Police Headquarters	4	12%
Directorate of Public Works	3	9%
Bee’ah Company	2	6%
General Secretariat of the Executive Council of Government of Sharjah	1	3%
directorate of town planning and survey	1	3%
Prevention and Safety Authority	1	3%
Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority	1	3%
Total	33	100%

Topic 2: Age-friendly Transportation

*Competent Authority*	*Repetition*	*Percentage*
Roads and Transport Authority	31	83%
Sharjah Police Headquarters	3	8%
Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department	1	3%
Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority	1	3%
Social Services Department	1	3%
Total	37	100%

Topic 3: Housing

*Competent Authority*	*Repetition*	*Percentage*
Department of Housing	8	29%
Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department	8	29%
Directorate of town planning and survey	3	11%
Social Services Department	3	11%
Districts and village affairs department	2	7%
Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority	2	7%
Sharjah Police Headquarters	1	3%
Not applicable	1	3%
Total	28	100%

Topic 4: Age-friendly Community Participation

*Competent Authority*	*Repetition*	*Percentage*
Social Services Department	7	40%
Sharjah Government Medial Bureau	4	24%
Districts and village affairs department	3	18%
Sharjah Institute for Heritage	2	12%
Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department	1	6%
Total	17	100%

Topic 5: Respect and Inclusion Services

*Competent Authority*	*Repetition*	*Percentage*
Consultative council of Sharjah	3	23%
Social Services Department	2	15%
Sharjah Education Council	2	15%
Sharjah Institute for Heritage	2	15%
General Secretariat of the Executive Council	1	8%
Sharjah Government Media Bureau	1	8%
Directorate of Human Resources	1	8%
Quarter Century “Ruba Qarn” Foundation	1	8%
Total	13	100%

Topic 6: Civic Participation and Age-friendly Employment

*Competent Authority*	*Repetition*	*Percentage*
Directorate of Human Resources	13	43%
Social Services Department	8	26%
Sharjah Institute for Heritage	2	6%
General Secretariat of the Executive Council of Government of Sharjah	1	3%
Consultative council of Sharjah	1	3%
Economic Development Department	1	3%
Sharjah Chamber of Commerce & Industry	1	3%
Not applicable	4	13%
Total	31	100%

Topic 7: Age-friendly Communication and Information

*Competent Authority*	*Repetition*	*Percentage*
Sharjah Media Corporation	4	24%
General Secretariat of the Executive Council of Government of Sharjah	3	19%
Sharjah Government Media Bureau	3	19%
E-Government Department	2	13%
Not applicable	2	13%
Social Services Department	1	6%
Districts and village affairs department	1	6%
Total	16	100%

Topic 8: Age-friendly Community and Health Services

*Competent Authority*	*Repetition*	*Percentage*
Social Services Department	10	72%
Directorate of town Planning and Survey	1	7%
Municipal and Agriculture Affairs Department	1	7%
Prevention and Safety Authority	1	7%
General Secretariat of the Executive Council of Government of Sharjah	1	7%
Total	14	100%

Second: Detailed report on standards of age-friendly cities and their availability in the Emirate of Sharjah:

S. No.	The topic	Topic components	Standard Serial No.	Details of the component	Available	Needs improvement	Unavailable	Non- applicable
1.	Outdoor spaces and buildings	1. Environment	1	City cleanliness
		1. Environment	2	Laws conserving the environment limit level of the noise and unpleasant smells in public places.
		2. Green spaces and walkways	3	Safe, secure green spaces that are cared for, as well as adequate shelters from the sun, rain, wind, in addition to toilet facilities and easy accessible seating.
		2. Green spaces and walkways	4	Barrier-free walkways with a smooth surface provided with public toilet facilities that can be easily accessed.
		3. Outdoor seats	5	Availability of outdoor seats in the streets, especially in the parks, transportation stations and public squares, which must be marked by regular dimensions.
		3. Outdoor seats	6	Seats are well maintained and periodically monitored and checked to ensure that they are made available for all.
		4. Pavements	7	The pavements are well maintained, smooth, leveled, non-sliding and wide enough to accommodate movement of people with disability.
			8	Pavements with low edges gradually descending to the level of the road.
			9	Pavements are free of any obstacles such as sewers, rovers, parked cars, trees, dog feces, snow, and pedestrians have priority to use.
		5. Roads	10	Roads are equipped with non-sliding pedestrian crossings with equal dimensions, well planned and organized to ensure safety of the elderly people upon crossing.
			11	Roads are equipped with a well-designed physical structure suitable for the place such as a crossing bridge, and over or underpasses to help pedestrians cross the road used by vehicles
			12	Traffic lights are visible, voiced and give enough time for elderly people to cross the road.
		6. Services	13	Group the services to be close to homes of the elderly and easily accessed.
		6. Services	14	Availability of special measures for service of the elderly people such as separate queues or service outlets for them 6-2.
		7. Buildings	15	The buildings are equipped with elevators.
			16	The buildings are equipped with easy-to-use ramps.
			17	The buildings are equipped with sufficient and clear signboards
			18	Buildings are equipped with stairs and handrails.
			19	The buildings are equipped with neither high nor low-steep stairs.
			20	The buildings have non-slippery floorings.
			21	The buildings are equipped with comfortable seating in the rest areas.
			22	The buildings are equipped with a sufficient number of public toilets, some of which are specialized for elderly people with disabilities.
		8. Public toilets	23	Clean
			24	Periodically Maintained
			25	Easily accessed
			26	There are clear signboards guiding to the public toilets.
		9. Traffic laws	27	Having valid laws that force drivers to stop before the pedestrians zebra lines
		10. Bicycle lanes	28	Provide special bike lanes that are completely separate from the pedestrian lanes without intersecting with them.
		11. Safety	29	Implementing of local laws related the safety of the public.
			30	Taking special measures to reduce the risks that may arise from natural disasters.
			31	Lighting the roads well.
			32	Arranging for police patrols to maintain safety.
2			33	Supporting initiatives related to community and individual safety.
	Transportation	1. Affordable cost	34	Affordable public transportation costs for all elderly people.
		1. Affordable cost	35	Fixed and clearly displayed transportation fares.
		2. Reliability and frequency – all day service	36	Public transportation is reliable, regular, frequent, available throughout the day, and regular (including night and weekend service).
		3. Travel Destinations	37	Public transportation is available and accessible to the destinations that meet the needs of the elderly, such as hospitals, health centers and parks).
			38	All areas are covered by the transportation within a network of roads well linked both inside and outside the city or between nearby cities.
			39	Trip lines are well interconnected with different available means of transportation.
		4. Age-friendly Vehicles	40	Vehicles are available with low floor and stairs, large and high seats.
			41	Cleanliness of the vehicles.
			42	Continuous maintenance of the vehicle.
			43	The vehicles have clear signs indicating bus number and destination of the trip.
		5. Priority of sitting	44	Priority of sitting for the older people and this is respected by other passengers
		6. Means of Transport drivers	45	Drivers are respectful and adhere to the rules and regulations of the traffic. They take into account departure and boarding of the elderly people and stop close to edge of the pavement to facilitate departure of the elderly from the bus.
		7. Transportation stops and stations	46	Specific stops are located close to the elderly people’s homes, with good specifications.
			47	Stops are equipped with seats and roofs to protect passengers from the weather.
			48	The stops are clean, safe and well lit.
			49	Accessible stations, ramps, escalators, lifts, suitable platforms, public toilets, and easy reading signboards are located strategically.
			50	Easily accessible stops and stations that fit the location.
			51	The station staff is polite and cooperative.
		8. Information	52	Elderly people are provided with enough information on how to use public transportation and the available transport options.
			53	Timelines are clear and easy
			54	Timetables clearly indicate routes of the buses available for the disabled and elderly.
		9. Community Transport	55	Provides community-based and comprehensive transport services by volunteer drivers and bus services to transport the elderly to the event venues and specific locations (through volunteers or free means of transportation for the elderly people).
		10. Taxes	56	Affordable taxis are provided, along with reduced fares, subsidies or discounts for the older people or low-income disabled people.
			57	Taxis are comfortable and accessible with enough space for the disabled or their walkways.
			58	Taxi drivers are polite and proactive in helping the elderly.
		11. Roads	59	Roads are well maintained and wide.
			60	Roads are well lit with appropriate design and location that facilitate driving.
			61	Roads are provided with sufficiently lit traffic signals at the intersections and clear markings at the main intersections, covered water drains, very clear signboards and site-friendly.
			62	Well-organized traffic movement.
			63	Roads are free of barriers that can obscure the driver’s eyesight.
			64	The traffic laws are strictly enforced, and abided by.
		12. Car parks	65	Availability of affordable parking areas for the elderly.
			66	Parking spaces near the buildings are a priority for the elderly.
			67	Spaces of the stops are suitable for older people to get down with their carts.
			68	Priority areas for older people are allocated near the buildings and transportation stops, and the way they are used is monitored.
		13. Specialized services	69	There are adequate services allocated for transportation of older people with disabilities.
		14. Capacity of driving	70	Driving courses are available to refresh their skills.
3	Housing	1- Affordability	71	There are affordable housing for all older people.
		2- Basic services	72	Basic services are available inside the affordable older people houses (electricity, water, gas, sewage)… etc.
		3. Design	73	Houses are built from suitable materials with solid structure.
			74	Houses are spacious enough to enable older people to move around.
			75	Houses are adequately equipped to conform to the environmental requirements (e.g., air conditioning or heating).
			76	Houses are air-conditioned, suitable and equipped for older people, including leveled areas and spacious corridors for wheelchairs, bathrooms, toilets and kitchens with suitable designs.
		4- Modifications	77	Houses are adapted to needs of the older people.
			78	Affordable housing modifications.
			79	Equipment for making house modifications is available.
			80	Financial aid is provided for home modifications.
			81	The availability of the required experience to successfully modify houses to meet needs of the older people.
		5. Maintenance	82	Maintenance services are affordable by the older people.
			83	Qualified and appropriately reliable service providers are available to carry out maintenance work.
			84	Public and rented houses, as well as public areas are well maintained.
		6- Ageing of older people in their homes	85	Services are located near elderly people’s homes.
			86	Affordable services made available to older people to stay at their homes and grow old.
			87	Providing the elderly with good information about the services available to help them to age at homes.
		7. Community inclusion	88	Housing design assists in the continued integration of older people into the community.
		8. Housing options	89	Availability of affordable and adequate housing options for older people.
			90	The older people have good information about housing options available to them.
			91	There are adequate and affordable houses for older people in local areas.
			92	There is a range of appropriate services, benefits and activities in housing facilities for the older people.
			93	Older people houses are integrated into the surrounding community.
		9. Living Environment	94	Houses are not crowded.
			95	Older people feel comfortable within their home environment
			96	Houses are not located in areas prone to natural disasters.
			97	Older people feel safe in the environment they live in.
			98	Financial assistance for home safety measures is provided.
	4. Community participation	1. Availability of the events and activities	99	The location is suitable for older people among their neighborhood with affordable and flexible transportation.
			100	Enjoying the option of having the elderly sharing with a friend or caregiver.
			101	Timing of the events is appropriate for the older people to participate during the day.
4			102	Freedom of entry and participation in an event (i.e., no need for membership). Purchasing of tickets is easy, facilitated and is done in one step, and does not need the elderly to stand in long queues for a long time.
		2- Affordable cost	103	Events and activities are affordable and do not include non-written expenditures.
		2- Affordable cost	104	The public and private sectors offer support to volunteering associations to keep the cost of activities affordable for the older people.
		3. Scope of events and activities	105	There is a wide range of events and activities to attract diverse segment of the older people who have a lot of different interests.
		3. Scope of events and activities	106	There are community activities that encourage participation of people of different ages and cultural backgrounds.
		4. Facilities and establishments	107	Meetings involving older people are held in different community sites such as centers, markets, schools, libraries, etc.
		4. Facilities and establishments	108	Facilities are accessible and equipped to enable participation of people who are incapacitated or in need of care.
		5. Promotion and strengthening of activities	109	Elderly people receive information on activities and events, including information about the activity itself, its accessibility, and transportation options.
		6. Treatment of Isolation	110	Personal invitations are sent to promote activities and encourage participation.
			111	Facilitating attendance of events, with no need for specific skills (including reading and writing).
			112	Any elderly member who no longer attends activities in a club shall remain listed for receiving the mail or telephone (messages), from such club until the member himself/herself requests removing his/her name from the list.
			113	Organizations make efforts to attract isolated elderly people through, for instance, personal visits or telephone calls
		7. Fostering Community inclusion	114	Community facilities promote joint and multi-purpose use by individuals of different ages and interests and foster interaction among the using groups.
		7. Fostering Community inclusion	115	Location and activities of local communities promote harmony, and the exchange of interests among the inhabitants in the same neighborhood.
5	Respect and social inclusion	1. Respect and inclusion services	116	Seeking the advice of the elderly people by the public, voluntary and commercial service providers about the best ways to serve them.
			117	Provision of public and commercial services and products adapted to the needs and preferences of the older people
			118	The services sector staff is respectful, helpful and is trained on how to deal with the elderly.
		2- General image and aging	119	The media, in its general image, includes the elderly in a positive way without any popular preconceived views (stereotype).
		3. Intergenerational and family interaction	120	There are community-wide facilities, activities and events that attract people from different generations to adapt to the needs and preferences of different ages.
			121	Older people are specifically integrated with community-based “family” activities.
			122	Intergenerational gathering activities are regularly conducted together for mutual pleasure and enrichment.
		4. Public awareness	123	Including the education on ageing and the elderly people in primary and secondary school curriculum.
			124	Effective and sustainable participation of older people in local school activities with the children and parents
			125	Older people are given opportunities to share their knowledge, history and experience with the other generations.
		4. Community inclusion	126	Older people are integrated as active partners in community decision-making, which affect them.
		4. Community inclusion	127	Community actions that aim to strengthen, link, support and make older people an important source of information as counselors, representatives and beneficiaries.
		5. Economic inclusion	128	Economically disadvantaged elderly people will enjoy public, voluntary and private services and events.
6	Civic participation and employment	1- Volunteering options	129	There is a broad choice for participation of older volunteers.
			130	Developing volunteering associations well by forming their own infrastructure, preparing their training programs and recruiting their volunteering workforce.
			131	Matching skills and interests of the elderly people with the jobs according to a register or database.
			132	Offer support for volunteers through providing means of transportation or reimbursement for car fuel costs, for example.
		2- Employment options	133	There is a wide range of job options for the older people.
			134	Developing policies and legislations that limit age-based bias.
			135	Retirement is optional and not mandatory.
			136	Providing flexible employment opportunities for the elderly, as well as options for part-time or seasonal jobs.
			137	Availability of programs and agencies for employing older people
			138	Employment organizations such as trade unions support flexible options for older people, for instance, as part-time or volunteer jobs for better participation .
			139	Encourage employers to recruit and retain older people.
		3. Training	140	Older people are offered pre-retirement training opportunities.
			141	Provide opportunities for older people to be re-trained on latest technology.
			142	Volunteering organizations provide training for their jobs.
		4. Accessibility	143	Promoting volunteering or paid employment opportunities.
			144	Providing free transportation to the workplaces.
			145	Adaptation of workplaces to suit the needs of the people with disabilities.
			146	No older staff members may be required to participate in overtime or voluntary work
			147	Allocate support of the organizations (e.g. funding or reduction of insurance costs related to the older people ) and employment, training and retaining of older volunteers.
		5. Civil participation	148	Include older people in the advisory boards, boards of directors and organizational bodies.
		6. Civil participation and employment	149	Provide support to enable older people to participate in civil meetings and events, such as allocation of reserved seats, and assist people with disabilities, by provision of aiding tools for the hearing-impaired, as well as offering transportation.
			150	Involve the older people in the development of policies, programs and professional plans.
			151	Encourage older people to participate.
		6. Valued contributions	152	Show respect, gratitude and appreciation to the older people’ achievements.
			153	Urge employers and organizations to take into account the needs of the older workers.
			154	Promoting of benefits gained from employing older people, among the employers.
		7. Entrepreneurship	155	Support older entrepreneurs and encourage self-employment opportunities (such as markets to sell agricultural and handicraft products, small business training, and micro- financing for working older people).
		7. Entrepreneurship	156	Provide information designed to support small businesses and those can be managed from home, which are developed in a suitable framework for the older people.
		8. Wage	157	Pay adequate wages for the older workers that commensurate with their job.
			158	Payment of costs incurred by older volunteers when they conduct voluntary work.
			159	No other income obtained by the older people from the retirement pension or any other form of financial support they deserve, may be deducted from their wages.
7	Communications and information	1. Presentation of information	160	Availability of basic and comprehensive communications system of written, visual and telephone media means accessible to the entire population.
			161	Ensure regular and reliable distribution of information by the governments or volunteering organizations.
			162	Dissemination of information aimed to reach the older people near their homes and places where they do their usual activities in their daily lives.
			163	Coordinate the dissemination of the information through affordable and well-advertised community services grouped in one designated center to provide them with the information.
			164	Providing programs and information that are of interest to the elderly through the use of both regular, and targeted media.
		2. Verbal communication	165	Older people prefer verbal communications facilitated for them through, public meetings, community centers, clubs, radio, and people responsible for individual dissemination of the information, for example.
			166	People exposed to social isolation receive information from reliable individuals who can interact with them, such as volunteer callers, visitors, and workers in home support services, barbers, chamberlains and supervisors.
			167	Individuals in public and commercial offices provide customized and individualized services for the older people, as required.
		3. Printed information	168	Including official templates, TV commentary and text-based visual presentations using uppercase letters and illustrating key ideas through clear and broad-written headlines.
		4. Clear language	169	Using printed and audio communications through simple and familiar words in short and straightforward sentences.
		5. Automated communications and hardware	170	Feed automated answering services instructions slowly and explain to the callers how to repeat the message at any time.
			171	Give the callers option of talking to an employee, or leave a message to contact them later.
			172	Equip electronic devices, such as mobile phones, radios, televisions, automated bank outlets and electronic card payment devices, with large-character buttons and screens.
			173	Teller machines, electronic display screens, mail outlets and other services with good lighting that can be accessed by people of different heights.
		6. Computers and network (Internet)	174	Availability of affordable computers and network services (Internet) on a large scale in many public areas, such as government offices, community centers, libraries and cafes.
		6. Computers and network (Internet)	175	Providing special instructions and individual assistance to users of these means.
8	Community support and health services	1. facilitation of services	176	Well distribution of health and social services in the city, combine them in one convenient location, to be accessible by all means of transport.
			177	Residential care facilities, such as retirement homes, and homes of the older people, shall be located near services and residential areas in order to keep the residents integrated into the wider community.
			178	Keep service facilities construction safe and fully accessible for people with disabilities.
			179	Provide clear and accessible information on health and social services for the older people.
			180	Coordinate provision of individual services and characterize them with a minimum level of bureaucracy.
			181	Treating older people with respect and sensitivity by the management and service staff.
			182	Remove economic barriers that limit availability of health and community support services as far as possible.
			183	Adequate availability and allocation of burial sites.
		2- Delivery of Services	184	Provide adequate range of health and community support services to promote, maintain and recover the health.
			185	Provision of home care services that include health, personal and housekeeping services.
			186	Make the available health and social services meet the needs, concerns and effectively serve the older people.
			187	Develop the skills of professionals and service providers and train them to communicate with and serve the older people effectively.
		3- Voluntary support	188	Encourage volunteers of all ages and support them to assist older people in a wide range of health frameworks.
		4- Planning for emergency and care	189	Include older people in the emergency plans and take into account their needs and abilities to get ready, and respond to emergency situations.