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The circumstances that lead to the death of elderly and several other older relatives made us aware of the poor treatment being given to older persons in Nigeria. Nigerians seem to prefer spending huge resources on death and burial ceremonies of older persons than in taking care of them while they are still alive.
First, social welfare, as they are no specified social welfare schemes for older persons. Second, older Nigerians tend to be isolated since their families relegate them to the back yard without communicating with them and only give them food when they are hungry; some are treated like outcasts, and others suffering from dementia are ostracised by society. Third, pension issues – the only persons who have adequate levels of income security are government employees; workers in the private sector and the self-employed, such as farmers, artisans, small traders and rural workers have no such benefits. Fourth, it is not out of place to claim that older Nigerians are faced with many challenges since, as the saying goes, old age comes with its pleasures and pains. Many older Nigerians have failing eyesight, sometimes accompanied by mobility and hearing problems, together with a general decline in health. Fifth, economic challenges – older Nigerians with no history of paid employment cannot obtain a gratuity or pension and have to depend on the care provided by their children. If this is unavailable, older persons have no other choice but to go begging.
In Nigeria 80 per cent of elderly citizens live in the countryside, while 20 per cent live in urban centres. The condition of those living in rural areas has in recent times gone from bad to worse due to modernisation and urbanisation. These twin processes have increased the mass migration of the younger population to urban centres in search of better living conditions, thereby making older persons feel more neglected. Much needs to be done in Nigeria to effectively implement national policies within the framework of the United Nations principles for older persons This is why Agewell Care Initiative promotes social advocacy for the elderly in rural areas - to improve their living conditions.
The state has no contribution targeting older Nigerians and is still working on a national framework for older persons.
Agewell Care Initiative has undertaken several initiatives to reach out to the elderly Nigerian population; they include the 20 Saturday Intervention for older persons, free eye care, and celebrating World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, the International Day for Older Persons, and the International Day of Families.
Participating in INIA’s international training programme on Policy Formulation, Planning, Implementation and Monitoring of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing gives you a better understanding of the Madrid action plan, global demographic trends and their implications for socio-economic development, policies and plans, while also making me more aware of what is really needed to improve the quality of life of older persons.
AWCI believes that Government should subsidise health care for older Nigerians, so as to reduce the burden on their families. Government should develop old people’s homes through the various community healthcare centres in Nigeria for easier delivery of the health policy it has initiated. Government should also establish structures for the transfer of knowledge from the old to the young generation. We believe that older persons have the potential to contribute to societal growth and development. Moreover, there should also be an urgent review of Nigeria’s pension system so as to enable older persons to have acceptable levels of income security. This is important, as adequate pensions promote gender equality. Social pensions generally redistribute higher levels of income to women, who have less opportunity to be entitled to a contributory pensions, and who live longer. Government should also charge pension administrators to come up with programmes for persons with no fixed income. Through our ageing intervention in Nigeria we have discovered that the biggest casualties are elderly persons who have no one to look after them because they have little or no money or pension to sustain themselves.
