Asia’s Silver Economy | Asian Geriatrics Society Launches in Hong Kong, Pushing Toward “Asian Standards”
By Jiuri in Tokyo
On August 25, 2026, the Asian Geriatrics Society was formally launched at the closing ceremony of the second International Forum on Proactive Health and Ageing at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Nearly 300 scholars and experts from mainland China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Finland and the Netherlands attended the forum.
At the unveiling ceremony, Zheng Yongnan, deputy chairman and general manager of Ta Kung Wen Wei Media Group, said the new organization fills a long-standing gap in Asia’s geriatric medicine sector: the region previously lacked an authoritative academic body with pan-Asian reach.
The society had already been registered in Hong Kong on February 24, 2026. During a closed-door preparatory meeting held alongside the forum, representatives from multiple Asian countries reached broad consensus on building a unified regional platform for geriatric research, standards and collaboration.
Forum chairman and Huazhong University of Science and Technology professor Zhang Cuntai described the launch as “highly significant.”
Why Hong Kong?
The choice of Hong Kong was not accidental.
Lau Chak-sing, vice-president of the University of Hong Kong, said in a keynote speech that Hong Kong is increasingly becoming a “super connector” linking medical innovation in mainland China with the international community.
In May 2026, Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said the city aims to develop into a major health and medical innovation hub. Peter Lam, chairman of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, has also emphasized Hong Kong’s role as an international financing and innovation center capable of connecting global healthcare projects with capital.
Hong Kong also benefits from two globally recognized medical schools — the University of Hong Kong and the Chinese University of Hong Kong — as well as access to the Greater Bay Area’s large clinical and patient base.
At the forum, Xu Anlong, dean of the Advanced Institute in Hong Kong of Sun Yat-sen University, called for the creation of a “common language” between traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine so that both systems can work together more effectively in responding to ageing.
For the Asian Geriatrics Society, Hong Kong is therefore more than a place of registration. It is intended to become a hub for academic exchange, standard-setting, talent development and industry cooperation.
From “Asian Solutions” to “Asian Standards”
The society’s establishment points to a larger issue: Asia’s silver economy, estimated at $1.2 trillion to $1.5 trillion, needs standards that reflect Asian populations and care systems.
For years, geriatric medicine across Asia has relied heavily on European and U.S. standards. Yet Asian populations differ in physiology, disease patterns, family structures and cultural approaches to care.
Zhang Cuntai argued that Asia needs guidelines, technical tools and care models developed around its own demographic and social realities, rather than simply importing Western experience.
Another notable outcome of the forum was the creation of the Asian Geriatrics Society Youth Paper Award, designed to support younger researchers and strengthen the region’s own talent pipeline.
As Zhang noted, the long-term development of geriatric medicine depends on “generation after generation of young people continuing the work.”
From Standards to Industry
For a $1.5 trillion market, the biggest shortage may not be capital, but rules.
Standards shape markets. They influence how frailty is assessed, how chronic diseases are managed, how elderly-care products are designed and how smart-care technologies are deployed.
The Asian Geriatrics Society plans to promote cross-border academic collaboration, joint industry standards, continuing education and professional training.
That could help Asia’s silver economy move beyond being simply a large consumer market and toward becoming a rule-setting market.
The significance of Hong Kong lies precisely in this intersection of research, regional cooperation and commercialization.
The launch of the Asian Geriatrics Society does not mean Asia has already established a unified standard system. But it marks a clear shift: the region is beginning to build its own institutional voice in ageing and elderly care.
