Hong Kong is facing a rapidly ageing population. It is projected that people aged 65 or above will upsurge from 13 percent in 2011 to 30 percent in 2041. It is therefore critical to address the needs of the elderly to cope with the multi-faceted challenges of our ageing society.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club is dedicated to improving the life quality of Hong Kong's senior citizens and has contributed over HK$1.15 billion to the well-being of the elderly in the past decade. In 2014, the Club's Charities Trust funded a HK$12 million donation to set up the The Chinese University of Hong Kong Jockey Club Institute of Ageing ("IoA") to promote positive ageing through research, public education and knowledge transfer.

To help identify areas for improvement and change, the Trust commissioned IoA to evaluate the elderly's quality of life based on the Global AgeWatch Index reports, and develop an AgeWatch Index specifically for Hong Kong over a five-year period from 2015 to 2019. The survey findings will enable Hong Kong to be compared with, and ranked amongst, 96 countries and territories worldwide, and help to lay the basis for identifying areas where elderly services may need to be devised or revised.

In addition, the Trust took reference from the World Health Organisation's Global Network of Age-friendly Cities and Communities to develop a District-based approach to promote active ageing. The Trust-initiated Age-Friendly City project sees the close cooperation of Hong Kong's four gerontology research institutes – IoA, The University of Hong Kong Sau Po Centre on Ageing, Lingnan University Asia-Pacific Institute of Ageing Studies, and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University Institute of Active Ageing. The project will assess the current situation of age-friendliness in the city, identify potential areas for improvement, and collaborate with various partners to further enhance the quality of life of the elderly and promote intergenerational harmony.