Sharjah 24: Ahmed Ibrahim Al Mail, Director General of Sharjah Social Services Department (SSSD), confirmed that the Emirate of Sharjah is working diligently and actively to ensure the sustainability of its title of age-friendly city, and to this end it has achieved more than 91% documented and available standards required by the Global Network for Age-friendly Cities and Communities affiliated with the World Health Organisation, after joining the network in 2017, under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, and His Highness assigned SSSD these tasks, which resulted in the establishment of the "Age Sensitive Sharjah Office".

During SSSD hosting of the “Meeting of Programmes Associated with the Global Network for Age-friendly Cities and Communities”, held on Wednesday, in cooperation with the World Health Organisation in Geneva, at the Sharjah Classic Car Museum, Al Mail stated that the aim of the meeting is to identify global models and experiences and how to provide information to the Global Network for Age-friendly Cities and Communities. 

Al Mail pointed out that the achievements were in cooperation with SSSD local partners of represented by departments and institutions in different sectors, who have been keen throughout these years to adopt the official standards of the Global Network for Age-friendly Cities and Communities, to provide the best and sustainable environment suitable for the elderly proactively, by transferring experiences to leading countries in this field, thus improving all services in all sectors in Sharjah.

Asma Al Khudari, Director of the Age-Sensitive Sharjah Office, addressed in her speech the strategic direction set by the office through a realistic and ambitious plan in which all capabilities were made available to perform all activities and services according to the available resources, which ensure the integration of the elderly into society. Al Khudari stressed the importance of providing activities that serves the standards of age-friendly cities issued by the World Health Organisation.

A number of representatives of foreign countries participated in the meeting to present their experiences in the field of services that meet the standards and aspects of age-friendly cities. Dr. Thiago Henrique, representative of the Global Network for Age-friendly Cities and Communities, also spoke, praised Sharjah that has worked sustainably over the past years to maintain its title as an age-friendly city. 
Dr. Thiago Henrique expressed his happiness at Sharjah meeting the requirements of the Age-Friendly Cities Programme and the commitment to work to create modern cities that enjoy a healthy lifestyle and the presence of senior citizens' communities.

The meeting presented the experiences of foreign countries, namely the Slovenian Network of Age-Friendly Cities and Communities, and affiliated programmes in North and South America, Portugal and Ireland, in addition to the participation of a representative from the European Health Organisation, whose experiences emphasised the importance of providing safety and an appropriate healthy aging environment in places, services and policies that encourage the elderly to enjoy activity while maintaining their autonomy according to the available capabilities.

On the sidelines of the meeting, an exhibition of services provided to the elderly was held in Sharjah, in which the Sharjah Police General Command (SPGC), the Department of Economic Development, the Roads and Transport Authority, the Sharjah Tourism and Commerce Development Authority, and the Emirates Society of Friends of the Elderly, in addition to Sharjah Social Services Department participated. 

At the conclusion of the meeting, the participants were honoured.

The second day includes field visits for the guests and participants in the meeting to learn about the Sharjah experience and ensure the comprehensiveness of the services provided to the elderly, whereas the delegation’s visited the nursing home for the elderly and SSSD branch in Hamriyah.