The population of the world aged 60 years and over increased from 205 million and 8 per cent in 1950 to approximately 688 million and 11 per cent in 2006. By 2050, the number will have increased to around 2 billion and 22 per cent. By 2030, half the population of Western Europe will be over 50, one quarter of the population of the developed world will be over 65, and one quarter of the population of Asia will be over 60. The ageing of Europe’s population is a crucial challenge for the 21st century. Ageing well is a frequently used concept, describing the objectives of future elderly care and rehabilitation. Enabling elderly people to live longer and independently in their homes is one goal for society as a whole. Pervasive and enduring consequences of demographic changes and an ageing European population present enormous opportunities as well as enormous challenges for European society. Initiatives for lifelong learning have yet not sufficiently taken into account the specific needs of senior citizens. Technologies are recognised as relevant platforms for information and communication as well as important instruments for teaching and learning. Nevertheless the design of courses and information- and communication technologies (ICT)-enhanced training of elderly people in this field still remains a challenging task which has not yet met the goals in terms of the identification and application of effective methods which could support learning. Especially the Internet and "virtual learning environments", electronic environments designed to facilitate instruction for elderly via the web, are at present very much in their infancy in terms of the uses to which they are put. Many environments have been developed but few work entirely satisfactorily because they are not designed or used appropriately. More work is still needed in terms of adequate implementation of technology and pedagogy, as well as new organisational requirements and potentials for education - adapted to the specific needs of senior citizens. This paper attempts to describe the threats and opportunities of introducing ICT to elderly learning.

This research objective will be achieved through a series of surveys. Each meeting (i) defined ICT system solutions and technology trends, (ii) discussed relevant ethical and privacy issues and (iii) weighed the trade-offs between difficulties and technological innovation. Second, and developed a roadmap showing how elderly concerns could be incorporated in policy decision making process / technology design through a series of thematic expert meetings. Interviews were also conducted with senior management board responsible for the elderly learning programs. Questions were focus on the future policy set up in order to implement their strategies in a more effective way. The roadmap will set out key actions, investment strategies, resource requirements, risks and milestones.

The author strongly believes that ICT can be used not only to help save on the costs of social policies. Elderly learners are not a homogeneous group of people. They are individuals when they are younger and they continue to be individuals when they age. Furthermore, the process of aging is different for each. Therefore, it is too narrow a viewpoint to think of one solution to solve all problems and remove all barriers of ICT use for the elderly education.