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KUALA LUMPUR: Healthy ageing must not become a privilege reserved only for those who can afford it.
Sultan of Perak Sultan Nazrin Muizzuddin Shah said that while longer and healthier lives were among modern civilisation’s greatest achievements, access to their benefits should not depend on wealth.
“A society is ultimately judged by whether the opportunities it creates remain within the reach of its most vulnerable citizens.
“Healthy ageing must be inclusive by design. The environments, services and technologies we develop should widen access rather than deepen existing inequalities.
“This is more than good social policy. It is a moral obligation and a mark of respect for our elders.
“The ability to age with health, dignity and purpose should never be determined by wealth,” he said in his opening address, titled “The Silver Economy: A Foundation for Shared Prosperity”.
He delivered the address at the High-Level Forum on the Silver Economy 2026, themed “Healthy Longevity for Economic Growth”.
At the event, Sultan Nazrin was presented with the Baroness Sally Greengross Award for Healthy Longevity Innovation by Global Coalition on Ageing chief executive officer Michael Hodin.
Sultan Nazrin said the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on Ageing: Empowering Older Persons in Asean, adopted by the bloc’s leaders in 2015, recognised the need for equitable access to healthcare, public services, preventive measures and support throughout life.
He said the foundations of healthy ageing did not begin at 60, but were laid through choices made decades earlier.
“If we delay intervention until frailty has taken root, our options narrow drastically.
“We must therefore design environments that do not merely accommodate declining capabilities but help preserve them.”
He added that healthy ageing required the right infrastructure, not simply the right services.
“We can no longer treat housing, healthcare, financial security and technology as separate areas of policy. They are interconnected corridors in the same lived environment.”
Citing an Asean study, Sultan Nazrin said demand for aged-care services in the region was projected to more than double over the next two decades.
“Any serious discussion on longevity must address the economics, as pressures on public finances and families are real.
“The Malaysia Care Strategic Framework and Action Plan cites research suggesting that every ringgit invested in care can generate up to RM7 in economic benefits through increased economic activity, employment and income.”