NATIONAL ACTIVE AGEING PROGRAMME COMES TO A CLOSE

• The 19th National Active Ageing Programme draws to a close today, 20 February 2025.
• The flame will be handed over by this year’s host, the North West Province, to the next host during the closing ceremony.
• A record 1 600 senior citizens from around the country took part in the fun-filled event.

After two fun-filled days, the 2025 National Active Ageing Programme, which was held under the theme “Embracing Vitality: Empowering older persons to thrive in their communities”, has reached its pinnacle with the final day of events scheduled for Thursday, 20 February.

Most of the outdoor sports activities were cancelled due to inclement weather.

The closing ceremony will feature a parade of provincial flags, choral music and official medal ceremony for athletes.

The 2025 National Active Ageing was attended a record by number of 1 600 older persons across South Africa.

At the closing ceremony, the National Active Ageing Flame of Hope will be officially handed over to the next host province, which is expected to be announced by the Minister of Social Development, Nokuzola Sisisi Tolashe.

The annual National Active Ageing Programme is led by the Department of Social Development in collaboration with the Department Arts, Culture, Sports and Recreation, the South African Older Persons Forum, and the provincial departments of social development on a rotational basis.

For 19 years, the National Active Ageing Programme has brought together thousands of older persons across South Africa – encouraging healthy lifestyle through meaningful participation in sport and music.

The programme is aligned to the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing and the United Nations Decade of Healthy Ageing (2021-2030).