Report highlights pensioners’ dire existence

Four out of five elderly people in Namibia who receive a pension grant live in rural areas, often in extreme poverty and with little to no access to water, power or sanitation facilities. Most live in the Omusati, Oshana and Oshikoto regions, home to the country&#039;s poorest residents.About 69% live in traditional dwellings and 8% in corrugated iron houses, while, in most cases, they are the oldest resident in the household and the primary caregiver of children in the home. This with an average monthly income of a little more than N$1 000, while largely dependent on food aid - which is often utterly insufficient.A report by the Family Caregiving Programme, titled ‘Older Persons and Community Care’, paints a bleak picture of the lives of the country&#039;s senior citizens, who often struggle to access services such as pension payments due to a lack of identity documents or transport to service centres.According to a survey, the average annual income for an elderly person was N$12 565, which is about N$1 047 per month. Only 4% receive a salary and/or a wage.Huge challengesNamibia has more than 200 000 elderly people; this is an increase of 40% in the last decade.Households with older people have an average of five people, with two-thirds living in a multigenerational household. Meanwhile, elderly people living in informal settlements experience huge challenges with no access to basic services such as water, power and sanitation. According to the report, relocations have placed people even further from healthcare and social services, which is especially a challenge for the elderly.Older people manage disabilities and chronic diseases, while they have to collect firewood for cooking and heat, fetch water from a communal tap or borehole, have no toilet facilities and answer the call of nature in the bush.The report found that the sharp increase of 40% in the number of the elderly and the increase in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) has caused the need for care services to skyrocket, while the risk of disabilities caused by NCDs, such as strokes, has also grown.Absence of safety netsHouseholds of older people are large and, in the absence of work or other social safety nets, pension grants have to do so much more and cannot meet the needs of the elderly.The report pointed to high levels of food insecurity, with the criteria for elderly households for food and drought relief being very unclear.During interviews, elderly people also asked that payout points for pension grants be revised so that they are more accessible to those in rural areas.The number of elderly people stood at 206 675 in 2023, representing 6.8% of the population. The unprecedented increase in the number of elderly people in Namibia puts pressure on not only them, but also family members and government services, especially in cases where they live with chronic diseases.Two-thirds of the country’s elderly are women, while Oshiwambo is most spoken in households, followed by Khoekhoegowab.– henriette@republikein.com.na

Report highlights pensioners’ dire existence

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Report highlights pensioners’ dire existence

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