More than 100 scholars and experts from a dozen countries are in Shanghai to work out a better system for looking after the elderly in China.

Participants agreed that the aging population is a comprehensive issue involving economic and social development and population policy, and one that will exert an influence on all aspects of development.

The only way to greet an aging society is to build a special system for caring for seniors, they said.

Wu Cangping, honorary president of the China Society on Geriatrics, proposed the creation of a service system for the aged.

R. J. Sluijs, an official of the Social Welfare Bureau of Holland, related the experience of Holland in this field over the past 50 years and offered proposals on services for the elderly of

Shanghai.

People at or above the age of 60 in Shanghai now constitute 18 percent of the city's population, and the aging population is expected to peak by 2030, said Shi Derong, director of the Shanghai Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau.

The city has a variety of facilities for seniors, and has established a community service system over the past 20 years, he added.