The Los Angeles-based Conrad N. Hilton Foundation has announced HelpAge International, an NGO which provides assistance for disadvantaged older people in developing countries, as the winner of the 2012 Hilton Humanitarian Prize, the world’s largest humanitarian award. HelpAge provides funds and training for elderly people world-wide to enable them to lead dignified, active, healthy and secure lives.
The organization’s work is increasingly critical with the world’s population aging at historic rates. By 2015, nearly 900 million people will be older than age 60 which is close to three times the population of the U.S. The aging trend is happening fastest in the developing world where incomes are lower and many elderly people live in extreme poverty. HelpAge will receive $1.5 million from the Hilton Foundation as this year’s winner.
