Employment and Social Development Canada

The Honourable Alice Wong, Minister of State (Seniors), today announced New Horizons for Seniors Program (NHSP) funding worth $25,000 to HelpAge Canada for their Seen Your Citizen? project. Minister Wong also marked World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD).

Seen Your Citizen? is a community-based project dedicated to supporting social participation and inclusion of seniors. This project aims to raise awareness of agism and stereotyping among generations.

To mark the 10th World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, the Government of Canada is proud to recognize the work being done here and around the world to raise awareness of elder abuse and help seniors protect themselves from its many forms.

The Government of Canada continues to address elder abuse by supporting a range of measures that help protect seniors from all forms of abuse. The New Horizons for Seniors Program seeks to expand awareness of elder abuse by funding community-based projects.

Through a new NHSP call for proposals for pan-Canadian projects the Government also aims to reduce the social isolation of seniors, which may impact up to 30 percent of Canadian seniors. Social isolation can increase vulnerability and put Canadian seniors at risk of elder abuse.

Quick Facts

• June 15 is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. It was first launched by the World Health Organization and the International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse in 2006 to bring attention to the abuse and neglect that some older adults experience and how abuse can be prevented. World Elder Abuse Awareness Day was officially recognized by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2011.

• The annual NHSP Call for Proposals for Community-Based Projects is open until July 10, 2015. Through the call, organizations are being invited to apply for funding of up to $25,000 for projects that help empower seniors to share their knowledge, skills and experiences with others and support communities by increasing their capacity to address local issues.

• The NHSP Call for Proposals for Pan-Canadian Projects is also open until July 10, 2015. Pan Canadian projects that receive funding will focus on addressing social isolation among seniors in Canada.

• Since 2006, the NHSP has funded nearly 15,000 projects in hundreds of communities across Canada, representing a total Government of Canada investment of $350 million.

• Since 2006, $2.8 billion in annual tax relief has been provided to seniors and pensioners.

• For a wide range of information for seniors, including details on elder abuse awareness, please visit Canada.ca/Seniors.

• The Government of Canada released the Government of Canada – Action for Seniors report in September 2014. The report is a new information resource highlighting federal programs and services that can be accessed by seniors, their families and caregivers. It was created in collaboration with more than 22 federal departments and agencies. The report can be found on Canada.ca/Seniors.

• Today’s announcement is one example of what the Government is doing to improve Canadians’ lives. To help families prosper, the Government is also enhancing the Universal Child Care Benefit (UCCB), introducing the Family Tax Cut and making improvements to the Child Care Expenses Deduction and the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit.

• The UCCB would increase to up to $1,920 per year for children under the age of 6, and parents would receive a benefit of up to $720 per year for each child aged 6 through 17.

• The proposed enhancements to the UCCB would provide $160 per month for each child under the age of 6 and $60 per month for each child aged 6 through 17.

Quotes

“The Government of Canada is committed to protecting seniors from elder abuse in all its forms. Eye-opening and perspective-changing activities conducted by organizations such as the HelpAge Canada will help foster a revitalized appreciation of the important role seniors play in our communities and a renewed respect for what they have achieved.”
– The Honourable Alice Wong, Minister of State (Seniors)

“Everywhere across Canada the message is the same: Social isolation of seniors is becoming a deep concern. It renders seniors more vulnerable. HelpAge Canada is dedicated to addressing it. We are pleased to have received support from the Government of Canada’s New Horizons for Seniors Program for the Seen Your Citizen? project that fights agism and helps seniors share their life experience.”
– Jacques Bertrand, Director General, HelpAge Canada

Associated Links

• Canada.ca/Seniors
• Funding: New Horizons for Seniors Program
• Innoweave Seniors SI initiative
• National Seniors Council
• Canada.ca/taxsavings
• Economic Action Plan 2015
• Backgrounder on new measures: Helping Families Prosper