MOTIVAGE

Effective management of the challenges of an ageing society is one of the most crucial tasks Europe is facing nowadays. Despite their increasing share in the population, elderly’s ability to advocate for their needs is significantly lower than of younger generations’. After retirement they do not only cease to be part of the labour market but often drop out of the community processes, and – in particular when their health starts to deteriorate – elderly become even more vulnerable to isolation. Dementia, a complex health issue leading to, among others, complete inability to live independently, affects an increasing number of people also in the programme area, imposing a burden on families, social care systems and local communities. The peripheral location of the border region further hinders effective and complex solutions to population ageing related problems, while the phenomenon itself remains unfamiliar to the majority of the society.
 
MOTIVAGE transforms the Lendava-Szentgotthárd area into an integrated age-friendly region, encourages social and economic inclusion, supports responsible and independent living, as well as an active, healthy and dignified ageing, and thus takes strain off social care systems and strengthens social cohesion. Through defining strategic frameworks and establishing cooperation networks of partners from various institutions, business, civil society and municipalities, the project implements a wide range of innovative, cross-border interventions: health promotion and disease prevention; sensor based remote home care services; intergenerational volunteering (where seniors are both providers and receivers of help) and economic reactivation programs. At the same time, MOTIVAGE identifies administrative, legal and financial obstacles to the cross-border integration of elderly care services, thus supporting similar initiatives in border regions, and promoting a proactive and enabling reform in the relevant policy fields.