The EU Anti-Poverty Strategy, published by the European Commission on 6 May 2026, highlights that almost one in five people aged 65 or over is at risk of poverty or social exclusion in the EU. The Strategy recognises that tackling old-age poverty requires coordinated action across pension adequacy, labour market participation and access to quality care services. It announces a Joint Report on Adequate Social Protection in Old Age and an Expert Report on national mechanisms to protect older people from poverty, both planned for 2027, to be followed by a High-level exchange on integrated policies for a dignified old age, as well as a European Care Deal for affordable care services.
Social Platform had called for adequate pensions to be guaranteed and affordable long-term care to be invested in, recognising that poverty in old age is inseparable from inequalities accumulated across the life course and welcomed the European Care Deal as an opportunity to adopt a holistic life-cycle approach prioritising the availability, affordability and accessibility of person-centred, community-based care, alongside the upskilling of the care workforce and the creation of a dedicated Care Platform to monitor and coordinate care services across Europe.
While the announced Joint Report, Expert Report and high-level exchange are welcome steps forward, important areas such as non-contributory pension schemes, automatic indexation of pensions and the fight against age discrimination across all areas of social life remain to be addressed.
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This new strategy marks a turning point by clearly affirming the need to combat poverty throughout the life course, while emphasising the importance of specific and enhanced support for older people.
Caritas Europa warmly welcomes the first ever EU anti-poverty strategy presented by the European Commission, marking an important step in placing the fight against poverty higher on the EU’s political agenda.
Eurodiaconia welcomes the Commission’s recognition of today’s challenges. The focus on integrated, person-centred services, underlined in both the Strategy and the accompanying documents, is a crucial step forward.
EU anti-poverty strategy analysis
Explore Social Platform’s analysis and reaction to the anti-poverty strategy as a whole on our main overview page.
