In the days leading up to this year’s International Day of the Elderly, to be celebrated on 1 October, Luxembourg's national statistical office STATEC has collected and analysed statistics on people aged 60+ living in Luxembourg.
In 1990, the General Assembly of the United Nations voted in favour of the implementation of the International Day of the Elderly, the first of which was officially celebrated on 1 October 1991.
According to STATEC’s study, as of 1 January 2016, a total of 111,759 residents in Luxembourg were people aged sixty or over. This represents an increase of 14.4% in the past five years. Over half (55.1%) were women. Regarding the activities of senior citizens, the study found that they spent on average two hours and fifty-five minutes in front of the TV and read for 39 minutes per day, as well as taking a daily siesta lasting around one hour and nine minutes on average. They also spend three hours and thirty-eight minutes a day doing housework.
17% of those between the ages of 60 and 64 actually living in the Grand Duchy still work, in comparison to the average 38.3% in other European Union member states. Moreover, 25% of residents over the age of 60 are active on social media. Finally, in 2014, 6.4% of senior citizens had an income which is below the poverty threshold.
