Widening the Access to Modern Technology for Elderly People

Hello dear readers and welcome to our blog! Our mission is to explore the accessibility of modern technology to senior citizens in Europe, and hopefully aid them by bringing light to ongoing projects funded by the European Union or national governments that mean to widen the access to computers and the Internet.

This is quite a specific and niche topic, but it’s nonetheless very important, especially on our continent whose population is steadily becoming older. We believe that everyone deserves access to digital technology, but we know that not everyone has the necessary skills or equipment to do so.

While this might not have been such a problem twenty years ago, public administration and many vital services now require online connectivity which might exclude older members of our society who grew up without computers and smartphones.

We hope that by reading this blog, you will realise how significant the problem of technology exclusion is and that you yourself would feel inclined to help elderly citizens in your community achieve a good level of computer literacy.

Data

In order to show you why it’s important to discuss the access to digital technology for senior citizens, we thought we could provide you with some current data regarding the use of computers by elderly people and the online presence of said group.

There are varying opinions as to whom can be considered a senior citizen; some sources claim anyone above the age of 65 is a senior citizen (this is the most common viewpoint), but others place the age at 55 or 60. For clarity purposes, we will use the most widely accepted one, 65.

Now, how many people fall into that category in Europe? It’s estimated that 20-24% of Europe’s population falls into the category of senior citizens. The European Union provides more specific data, placing the number at exactly 21.3%, or one-fifth of the total population in the union.

This is quite a big number and it exemplifies the demographic crisis that Europe is facing, but to stay on topic, this number shows that a large part of the population is elderly and if they don’t have access to digital technology, it means that a big minority in the union is falling behind.

According to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, only 1 in 4 senior citizens between the ages of 65 and 74 has the most basic digital skills, which is troublesome. Another research from 2020 showed that 46% of the elderly population was in risk of digital exclusion.

Some EU countries are more affected than others. A 2017 study showed that many senior citizens (65-74 years old) have never even used a computer in countries like Croatia (73%), Bulgaria (74%) and Greece (78%).

Elderly people living in rural regions with bad Internet connection or no Internet connection at all have even worse outcomes.

Nowadays, many services are exclusively online and this data is very problematic when you imagine that elderly members of your community might soon not be able to do basic tasks such as paying their bills or ordering medication.

Conclusion

A lot more could be written about the current situation of digital technology access and the many obstacles that elderly citizens face, but we want to remain positive and work together to create a future where everyone is able to use computers and the Internet, so nobody falls behind.

We hope our articles shine a light on this issue and inspire more people to get involved and help senior citizens.