-
CENTRES
Progammes & Centres
Location
As aging populations grow, nations turn to longevity diplomacy—using health policies, biotech, and therapeutics to enhance soft power and global leadership.
Image Source: Getty
This article is part of the series—Raisina Edit 2025
Foreign policy has traditionally been conducted by government officials engaging in diplomatic relations with other governments to further relationships and negotiate economic, military, and global matters. However, in the 20th century, we have seen non-state actors play an increasingly significant role in advancing foreign policy, particularly with the rise of Track II level diplomacy. s– These include think tanks, sports diplomacy, where athletes foster goodwill between nations, cultural diplomacy driven by artists and musicians, and humanitarian diplomacy where Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs) and other international organisations participate in negotiations for humanitarian access and the delivery of aid. In the 21st century, the realms of foreign policy have expanded further, particularly in areas such as climate change, where the private sector and NGOs contribute to nation-state multi-stakeholder solutions. Foreign policy continues to expand, and the newest and emerging form of foreign policy relates to longevity. Given the challenges such as global pandemics, aging populations, the rise in non-communicable diseases (NCDs), and accelerating scientific advancement in biotechnology and longevity therapeutics, a new form of soft power is emerging.
In the 21st century, the realms of foreign policy have expanded further, particularly in areas such as climate change, where the private sector and NGOs contribute to nation-state multi-stakeholder solutions.
In this emerging area of longevity diplomacy, countries would engage in a multi-pronged public diplomacy effort with scientific exchanges, educational programmes, corporate exchanges, and political dialogues on best practices, industry benchmarks, manufacturing, and moonshot collaboration.
There are four key areas for a longevity foreign policy strategy:
The global population of people over 60 is projected to increase from 1.1 billion in 2023 to 1.4 billion in 2030. By the mid-2030s, almost 265 million individuals aged 80 and older are set to outnumber the population of infants as well. The global centenarian population (people 100 years and older) is projected to grow eightfold by 2050. Countries such as Japan, Singapore, Norway, and Switzerland have already actively implemented domestic policies to promote longer, healthier lives. They can leverage this domestic policy success through bilateral cooperation or in multilateral forums, sharing best practices or providing expertise and support to other countries in implementing similar policies. For example, there is much to learn from how Japan’s nutritional education practices in primary and secondary schools have impacted the population health span. Similarly, Singapore’s longevity-minded urban wellness designs have contributed to mobility and exercise of their population, while Norway’s has combined universal healthcare, generous social welfare and public health campaigns to promote healthspan.
Singapore’s longevity-minded urban wellness designs have contributed to mobility and exercise of their population, while Norway’s has combined universal healthcare, generous social welfare and public health campaigns to promote healthspan.
As citizens around the world start to plan for longer lives, governments will be looking to emulate the successfully implemented policies of other countries. This will be an increasingly important area of soft power and an opportunity for countries of all sizes to position themselves as global leaders in longevity, population health and the various niche areas of statecraft that emerge within it.
The COVID-19 pandemic reminded the world that our health is interwoven and that our opportunity for survival is linked to global economics, manufacturing supply chains, and scientific expertise. This pandemic also saw the first use of an mRNA vaccine and rapid advancement in biotechnology, enabling virus analysis and vaccine development. The international political fight for vaccines and the subsequent strain on the manufacturing supply chain offer a vivid picture of the challenges faced by nations lacking the next generation of therapeutics expertise or the infrastructure to manufacture it. While it is important for pandemic preparedness, mRNA technology is also important for longevity-related therapeutics as it can potentially treat genetic diseases, infections and cancer. Equally important are the existing and emerging gene therapies to treat ageing-related pathological conditions.
These treatments can herald a new era in health diplomacy and healthspan supporting foreign aid. For countries whose companies created the intellectual property of these treatments, therapeutics diplomacy plays a big role in economic trade and negotiations. For countries with the manufacturing infrastructure to produce these new therapies, it primarily positions them as key global players of critical elements of the supply chain.
Science diplomacy is pivotal for advancing longevity research and strengthening international relations. Longevity-minded nations can seize this opportunity by fostering scientific collaboration through capacity building—establishing state-of-the-art research facilities, leveraging computational resources for data analysis and modeling, signing international agreements on longevity research, and initiating government-funded joint projects.
To further economic opportunities, this can be complemented with a broader economic network, inviting companies, venture capital firms, accelerator programmes, and other stakeholders. Leveraging a nation’s convening authority can further help connect cross-border economies and amplify international scientific momentum.
EyeArt is an artificial intelligence (AI) eye screening system that detects age-related macular degeneration and glaucomatous optic nerve damage.
As the longevity therapeutics and preventative health market grows, so will new forms of medical protocols, tools, and standards. This is a ripe opportunity for global longevity health leadership. An example is artificial intelligence-related diagnostics, which can improve disease detection to catch diseases early. EyeArt is an artificial intelligence (AI) eye screening system that detects age-related macular degeneration and glaucomatous optic nerve damage. It is approved for clinical use in the United States and the European Union. In the future, there will be more AI capabilities and diagnostic tools. There is an opportunity to leverage these within health diplomacy strategies and foreign aid packages. Countries with fewer technological capabilities and resources to develop these technologies will benefit the most.
Today, the field of political global leadership in longevity is wide open, and countries have the opportunity to share their longevity innovation, standards, benchmarks, and tools with the world.
No matter what is in a country’s military strength, industries, or exports, its most prized and greatest asset will always be its people. As the quality of living standards continues to improve globally, what will remain is the quality of life. Not too long ago, a nation’s prosperity was measured by the access to electricity, then cars, and then the internet. Today, it is AI, but tomorrow, it will be the gift of longevity.
Health is wealth—and nations that strategically seize this cultural and technological moment to become global longevity leaders will offer something no nation in history has been able to provide at the diplomatic negotiating table—the gift of longevity.
Lydia Kostopoulos is a Senior Strategy and Emerging Technologies, the author of "Imagination Dilemma: Tools to overcome it and thrive through disruption" and founder of the Abundance Studio consultancy.
The views expressed above belong to the author(s). ORF research and analyses now available on Telegram! Click here to access our curated content — blogs, longforms and interviews.
Lydia Kostopoulos is a strategy and innovation advisor. She speaks and writes about disruptive technology convergence, innovation, tech ethics, and national security. In efforts to ...
Read More +
PREV
