"We Are No Longer Enabling Fulfilment; We Are Extracting Labour"

New research warns framing older adults as economic tools risks undoing decades of social progress.

A major new policy paper accuses the International Monetary Fund (IMF) of promoting an “exploitative” and “misleading” approach to ageing through its Silver Economy Framework. 

The critique, by Dr Kingsley Omeihe of the University of the West of Scotland, refutes the IMF’s notion that “70 is the new 50” - arguing that it reduces older people to economic assets while ignoring the realities of ageing and social justice.

Dr Omeihe’s intervention comes as global policymakers wrestle with the challenges of ageing populations, but he warns that the IMF’s market-first lens risks doing more harm than good:

 

The IMF’s framework mistakes longevity for capacity and subtly shifts the burden of demographic change onto older people. It treats ageing as a variable to be managed, not a stage of life to be respected. This isn’t progress, it’s a quiet erosion of rights. We must stop measuring later life by how long people can work and start valuing how well people are able to live. That’s the real mark of a just society.

Dr Kingsley Omeihe of the University of the West of Scotland

 

The Silver Economy Framework promotes policies that encourage older adults to remain in the workforce longer. Dr Omeihe’s paper warns this model risks undermining retirement security, increasing inequality, and ignoring non-economic contributions such as community care and volunteering.

Dr Omeihe is calling for a fundamental rethink of how ageing is approached in economic policy. Rather than pushing older adults to remain in the workforce under the guise of productivity, he advocates for policies that recognise the full diversity of ageing experiences. This includes respecting the right to rest, acknowledging lifelong inequalities in health and opportunity. Economic participation in later life must be a genuine choice and not a necessity imposed by inadequate pensions or rising living costs.

At the heart of his proposal is a move toward dignity and inclusion-led frameworks. This means investing in flexible pathways into retirement, recognising unpaid contributions such as caregiving and volunteering, and creating structures that promote intergenerational balance, not competition. Insisting on a more humane framework, Dr Omeihe calls for the IMF to support ageing populations holistically, rather than viewing them through the narrow lens of economic value.

The paper calls for a move away from efficiency-led ageing policies toward a more human-centred model that ensures meaningful choice, robust social protection, and recognition of diverse later-life experiences.

As governments and international financial institutions continue to shape global responses to demographic change, Dr Omeihe’s paper urges them to reject narratives of economic utility and instead lead with empathy, fairness, and foresight: Aging should not be treated as a fiscal challenge to be solved but as a shared human journey to be supported with dignity.

 

The paper, Why the IMF’s Silver Economy Misses the Mark, is available online via the UWS Academic Portal.