Old-age home report gathers dust

It’s been eight years since a parliamentary standing committee found that more old-age homes are needed in the country to curb the suffering of senior citizens.

However, a report on the matter has continued to gather dust.

Between March and August 2016, the parliamentary standing committee on gender equality, social development and family affairs visited regions to investigate the status of old-age homes in Namibia.

Countrywide public hearings followed the second reading of a motion on old-age homes, which was originally tabled in the National Assembly by parliamentarian Elma Dienda on 26 June 2015.

According to the report, most of the communities cited a dire need for the construction of old-age homes, with the Zambezi Region being the only exception – mixed feelings were reported on the initiative there.

Those in favour of the motion listed negligence of children and family members regarding the elderly in their care, abuse, bullying, a lack of affordable housing, alcohol abuse by elderly and poverty among the numerous issues faced.

‘Abandoned’

“Most of the elderly people have been abandoned by their families due to migration to urban centres for employment opportunities,” the report read.

“This movement of young people from rural to urban areas poses a serious challenge to elderly people as they are often left alone, tasked with responsibilities like looking after domestic animals and crop fields, and providing food for themselves.

“An elderly person needs to be taken care of in many aspects of life; for instance, attending to their medical needs and cooking for them,” the committee found.

“Some children abuse their parents by forcefully taking away their monthly pension grant or dumping their own children on their parents without providing the necessary support.”

Some towns have old-age homes which are overseen by government.

The report noted that some of these homes desperately need to be revamped as they are not in a good state.

Existing projects

During an enquiry into the status of this motion, Namibian Sun uncovered that it was adopted in parliament on 17 March 2020 and sent to the health ministry for implementation.

However, when contacted for comment, executive director Ben Nangombe said there is a government directive compelling ministries to focus on existing projects.

“Government has given out a directive that we complete the outstanding projects before we take on new projects,” he said.

“Of course, the well-being of our citizens is important. The fact that there are elderly people who don’t have access to important services is an issue of concern. But at this point in time, the ministry is working on completing outstanding projects before we take on new ones.”

Time running out

In 2015, Namibian Sun reported that President Hage Geingob - while addressing residents in the //Karas Region – raised the possibility of constructing more old-age homes.

However, with time running out on his second term in office, that possibility is looks increasingly more unlikely.

Meanwhile, former deputy finance minister Natangwe Ithete likened old-age homes to prisons, and accused Namibians of losing their culture by taking elderly relatives to these homes.

He said instead of dumping the elderly in old-age homes, Namibians should embrace senior citizens by taking care of them and preserving their culture.

He made these remarks when the report was being discussed in parliament in March 2020.

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