PENANG: Kuching South City Council (MBKS) Mayor Dato Wee Hong Seng showcased the city’s preparations for an ageing population when he featured as a panellist at the World Health Organization (WHO) Mayors’ Meeting on Healthy Cities held here.

Speaking during a session on future-ready healthy cities today, Dato Wee shared Kuching South’s long-standing commitment to the Healthy Cities movement and said the council is strengthening age-friendly planning as the city approaches ageing-city status by 2028.

According to a statement, he emphasised that a healthy city is built not only through healthcare services, but also through clean surroundings, safe public spaces and supportive community environments.

Dato Wee highlighted several private-sector collaborations that are expanding Kuching’s senior support ecosystem, including Borneo Medical Centre’s Hospital-Led Home Care service and Elica Equity’s Senior Retirement and Community Living development offering independent and assisted living, rehabilitation and dementia care.

He also noted Ibraco’s upcoming elderly-friendly apartment project with improved access to medical facilities and transport.

He added that MBKS is enhancing accessibility through the new Pay and Go Smart Parking System, which now features an Elderly Easy Payment (EEP) option enabling seniors to register once and have parking fees deducted automatically without manual payment or app usage.

Dato Wee said these initiatives form a growing continuum of care for seniors in Kuching and reaffirmed MBKS’s commitment to long-term, inclusive and age-friendly planning under the WHO Healthy Cities framework. -UKASnews