Worldwide, the risk of death before age 80 has fallen from nearly 80% in 1970 to just over 50% in 2019. Continuing this extraordinary success is possible, and by 2050, the risk of death before old age could be halved from current levels (to 25%). But this requires attention to the rapid demographic transition occurring in every country with ageing populations, and the emergence of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) as the major cause of death.
In partnership with the World Bank, the Healthy Longevity Initiative (HLI) aims to develop the evidence base for countries to invest in life-course investments covering three areas: scale up high-impact interventions, implement complementary reforms of social safety nets, and support data and global public goods for healthy longevity. HLI recommendations would contribute to achieving three linked key outcomes: (i) reduced death and disease from NCDs and improved wellbeing; (ii) reduced poverty and gender inequality; and (iii) improved productivity and duration in work. The HLI effort will be complemented with new online and in-person training materials that provide tools for decision makers and students to learn how to design evidence-based HLI programs suitable for national priorities.
