Active ageing policies in Italy : Report on the state of the art

This report is the result of research work within the scope of the “Multilevel participated national co- ordination of policies on active ageing” project. The project aims to promote and consolidate national co- ordination to facilitate a greater understanding of active ageing in Italy through the involvement of the main players (public decision-makers, civil society, the scientific community) and to improve knowledge of the phenomenon of active ageing and of the policies supporting it. The aim of the report is to provide a timely state of the art (situation as of February 2020, that is to say, the period before the Covid-19 emergency), in relation to the public policies on active ageing in Italy. Underpinning the report is the international framework which has characterised and addressed the theme in recent years, in particular, that produced by the United Nations, namely the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing with its commitments and the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda with its sustainable development goals The (qualitative) methodology adopted has involved exchanges and interactions with contact persons in institutions at various levels of government: Regions, Autonomous Provinces, Ministries and Departments at the Presidency of the Council of Ministers. For each of these organisations, a brief report has been produced (the list of the reports produced is contained in Appendix 3; each individual report can be consulted on the project’s website http://famiglia.governo.it/it/politiche-e-attivita/invecchiamento-attivo/progetto-di- coordinamento-nazionale). The common structure of the reports has facilitated their analysis according to themes, with the information being channelled into this national report. The results of the study have highlighted a vibrant, dynamic situation with regard to the policies for active ageing, both at national government level and from a regional/Autonomous Province perspective. They have, however, also shown that there is considerable scope for improvement. This concerns both the production of regulations and policies on aspects that are still particularly “lacking”, such as, for example, the aspect of gender and that of ageing in the workplace, and addresses the need to put into practice and therefore implement regulations and policies which already exist but remain, for the most part, on paper, essentially translating theory into practice. Our analysis, which is also based on a comparison between policies produced in terms of documents, and policies actually implemented, has highlighted a number of such cases. At a national level, the mapping of measures and interventions which can be ascribed to active ageing reflects the traditional model of the Italian welfare system which bears a heavy legacy of categorical fragmentation. The results, however, testify to considerable interest in, and significant commitment to, the theme of active ageing, although it continues to lack momentum towards the paradigm shift that the holistic and organic approach towards active ageing would require. Such a situation is in fact facilitated by the continued division by category of the welfare system, evidently still based on a model of life progression characterised by the rigid age-based division of its phases. At a regional level, the analysis has highlighted positive and promising developments of new policies for active ageing in recent years in nearly all the Italian Regions and Autonomous Provinces. As of today, ten Italian Regions have in place a law dedicated to active ageing (Piedmont, Liguria, Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Marche, Abruzzo, Campania, Apulia, Basilicata and Calabria) and there are a further two in which a law with these features does not exist, but the laws on the subject are similarly included organically in other types of provisions (Emilia-Romagna and Umbria). All the Regions and Autonomous Provinces have at least one 10 sectoral policy that promotes aspects of active ageing in specific areas. Within this positive panorama, there are a number of elements which could be improved. For example, various legislative interventions (in particular, the more recent ones) have so far produced limited results. It is therefore possible to affirm that, in the last 10-15 years, many of the Regions and Autonomous Provinces in Italy have initiated or continued the development of policies on active ageing that are aligned with the objectives and priorities identified by international programmes such as the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing and the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations. Furthermore, some successful cases, noteworthy because of the holistic response, the resources committed and speed of implementation of systematic policies, can constitute innovative and effective examples to replicate or from which to draw inspiration, to promote the well-being of seniors through active ageing. A further important result of this study is that it has revealed, through the feedback and opinions of the institutional contact persons, the importance of starting a discussion and continuous multilevel co- ordination. This, amongst other possible outputs, would facilitate exchanges between regional and national actors, enabling a transfer of knowledge, practices and policies that have been successful or are of potential benefit. In addition, the results of this study suggest that now is the time to develop and implement legislation within a national context on active ageing which is able, notwithstanding regional autonomy in this area, to outline a framework and to suggest the direction and limits within which to act.