Anti-Ageism and Openness to Lifelong Learning, Work-Life Balance in an Inclusive University

The processes of discrimination in society negatively influence the social climate and economic development of the country. Manifestations of discrimination in the modern world have many forms. To deal with them, governments develop and implement policies aimed at preventing their further development. Overcoming age discrimination, which is called anti-ageism, has been adopted in many countries, including the studied countries of Central Asia (Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan). In this paper, we demonstrated the features of the formation of anti-ageism and its component—openness to lifelong learning in inclusive universities—and proved the positive influence of these processes on work-life balance. We revealed positive aspects of the normative and legal regulation of these processes in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, which gradually influence the achievement of positive results in the labour and education markets and the sphere of social support. The goal of this paper was to systematise the specifics of the formation of anti-ageism and openness to lifelong learning as the precondition for the achievement of work-life balance in inclusive universities in the selected countries of Central Asia. To achieve this goal, we tried to determine the characteristics of the anti-ageism policy in certain countries of Central Asia and identify the specifics of lifelong learning in inclusive universities of Central Asia as a factor of achievement of work-life balance. © 2025 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.