GPS-enabled bracelets to be given to elderly in Beijing

About 12,000 elderly Chinese people suffering from cognitive problems like dementia will get free GPS-enabled bracelets that would help prevent them from getting lost, officials said on Sunday.

The bracelets with Global Positioning System (GPS) will be given to elderly people who have cognitive problems such as dementia, Wang Ning, deputy mayor of Beijing said. By installing an app in their smartphones, children of the seniors can locate their parents. The elderly people can also make emergency calls with the bracelets, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. China's population is ageing.

In 2015, about 222 million of the world's most populous country's 1.3 billion citizens were aged 60 or older.

According to a survey by the Zhongmin Social Assistance Institute and a leading news platform Toutiao, 1,370 senior citizens go missing every day, with an average age of 76. Measures are taken in Beijing to help the seniors. According to Wang, they are also installing emergency call devices and smoke detectors for elderly people living alone. By the end of November, the equipment will be given to at least 5,800 households.