Introduction

The Malaysian Healthy Ageing Society (MHAS) is a non-governmental organization dedicated to imparting knowledge and education to healthcare professionals and members of the public on numerous healthy ageing issues. MHAS has taken on the task of organizing the 1st World Congress on Healthy Ageing on 19 - 22 March, 2012 with the Theme: "Evolution: Holistic Ageing in an Age of Change". The Congress is to be held at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Healthy ageing is one of the major challenges for the world. The consequences of the demographic transition will have a tremendous impact on economy, health, social development and welfare of societies. Consequently, there is a need to enhance our knowledge about the promotion of good health among young and older people for a better quality of life in its later stages. Healthy ageing fostered by systematically planned health promotion efforts, was mentioned as early as 1998 as Target 5 in the WHO policy "Health for All in the 21st Century". Active ageing (according to the European Commission) includes life-long learning, working longer, retiring later and more gradually, being active after retirement and engaging in capacity-enhancing and health-sustaining activities.

This first for Malaysia, if not the world, will encompass all aspects of health issues - prevention and management, the latest medical research and healthy ageing protocols - in both mainstream and complementary & alternative (CAM) medicines.