Elderly people in Uganda have said they could be destined for bad times if the government does not address the challenges they face.
As they marked the International Day for the Elderly last week, the elderly said today’s rapidly changing economy makes them increasingly vulnerable.
“With a combination of changing attitudes and migration of the youth in search for employment, older people are increasingly left without support and at the same time bear a large [responsibility for] taking care of orphans,” reads part of the Kabarole elders’ statement.
According to an analysis report by the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, 63 per cent of orphans and vulnerable children are under the care of the elderly, who say it strains them. “The elders are very important in the world. We look after very many orphans, family backgrounds are based on us, we educate and pass on knowledge to the young generation and promote good cultures but we have not received enough support,” the chairperson Kabarole District Elders Association (KDEA), Mr Sarapio Makuruki, said.
He added that the elderly suffer from chronic illnesses such as diabetes, and spinal cord complications which require regular medical treatment but such illnesses are rarely catered for at local health centres and are costly in other referral centres.
“Left untreated, such conditions can cause permanent disability. The Uganda Bureau of
Statistics has estimated that at least 64.5 per cent of people aged above 60 years are severely disabled. Many, especially older women, are destined to a life of poverty, social exclusion, discrimination and abuse,” he said.
Last year, the government proposed to pay a monthly allowance of Shs20,000 to the elderly but only as a pilot.
Mr Moses Ikagobya, the vice chairperson of Kabarole, said the district has been supportive by bringing elderly people on board despite the meagre resources it receives.
“We support the elders through NAADs [National Agricultural Advisory Services, a government programme targeting the needs of poor subsistence farmers] and community projects but sometimes [the elderly] do things without informing us. They are under affirmative action like the youth and the disabled,” Mr Ikagobya said.
