Ageing & Development News and analysis of issues affecting the lives of older people Issue 25 / March 2009 Inside: 2 News: Africa social policy; Research update; Older women’s rights; Insights into working life; Steps to a convention; Pension watch 6 Briefing: New approaches to primary healthcare 8 Resources: Journal articles, reports and books Migration means grandparents are bringing up children Two reports from former Soviet Union them up hard, and professionals observed “The majority of policy work on migration countries highlight the pivotal role of that these families faced difficulties. focuses on the migrants themselves. grandparents in relation to large-scale Policy makers must also consider the In the families studied, only one in five migration. vulnerability of those who stay behind, older people considered remittances as especially older people and children,” Kyrgyzstan and Moldova are two of the a source of income. The study calls for says Eppu Mikkonen-Jeanneret, HelpAge most remittance-dependent countries in more material, psychological and social International regional representative for the world. Most migrants go to work in support to older people who look after Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Russia, which is now the second-largest grandchildren. receiver of migrant labour after the USA. In Moldova, one in three working-age The impact of migration on elderly people: In Kyrgyzstan, one in five working-age people have left the country to work grandparent-headed households in adults have gone to work abroad. A study abroad. Almost one in seven children Kyrgyzstan involving 120 older people in the two in villages, and more than 50 per cent Ablezova M et al, HelpAge International Central Asia and Social Research Center, poorest provinces, carried out by in towns, live with their grandparents. American University of Central Asia, 2008 HelpAge International Central Asia and A report by HelpAge International, based (draft) the Social Research Center, American on a project with UNICEF to develop University of Central Asia, points to the volunteer networks to support older Grandparents and grandchildren: severe poverty of older people who stay carers, shows grandparents’ income to impact of migration in Moldova at home, relying on pensions that have be inadequate. Average state pensions HelpAge International Moldova, 2008 not kept up with inflation. are less than half the subsistence level. Interviews with more than 500 older Adult children had migrated in nine out people in two regions showed that of ten families surveyed. The decision to remittances were random. migrate was made as a family, with support from the older generation. Older The report calls for the state to consider people caring for grandchildren said they older people as an important resource for got pleasure from their grandchildren. childcare. It recommends providing them However, some said they found bringing with special entitlements and support at community level. A&D25-AW-1.indd 1 4/3/09 12:39:20 2 Ageing and Development March 2009 Africa moves on social policy The first-ever Social Policy Framework Action on Ageing, promoting the rights accompanying costed national plans for for Africa recognises the depth of of older people through national implementation using national and older people’s poverty and promotes legislation, supporting older people international funding when necessary. their right to social protection. through social protection, and developing The Social Policy Framework was ratified intergenerational programmes. The framework was adopted at the first at the African Union summit in Addis African Union Conference of Ministers A section on social protection highlights Ababa in February 2009. It will be the in charge of Social Development in the emerging consensus that a basis for developing national programmes Namibia in October 2008. It marks a “minimum package” of essential social and regional reviews, including a historic step towards improving social protection should include essential biannual social policy report by the security across the continent. healthcare and benefits for older people, African Union Social Affairs Commission. children and people with disabilities. Its 19 action areas and related Ministers meeting in Namibia recommendations include a section on It highlights the urgency of building also adopted the Windhoek Declaration ageing, which points out that older people political consensus to implement the on Social Development, and Africa’s first- are generally recognised as among the minimum package. It recognises that ever Common Position on Social Integra- poorest of the poor. It recommends fully social protection is a state obligation, tion, which was presented at the UN implementing the African Union’s 2002 and that provision for it should be Commission for Social Development 47th Africa Policy Framework and Plan of included in national legislation with session in New York in February 2009. Tanzania study shows pensions help Cash transfers help both older people By 2007, nearly 600 of the most The evaluation also pointed to inherent and children in their care, according to vulnerable older people in Kagera region, difficulties in implementing a means- a study from northern Tanzania. which is severely affected by HIV and tested pension in an area of widespread AIDS, were receiving a monthly pension poverty. “The study suggests how the of Tsh.6,000 (US$5) through the Tanzanian government can meet its KwaWazee project supported by REPSSI, commitment to older people under its World Vision and the Swiss Agency for national poverty reduction strategy, Development and Cooperation. Those MKUKUTA,” says Astrid Walker Bourne, caring for children received a further HelpAge International Policy and Tsh.3,000 (US$2.5) per child. Evidence Manager. An evaluation of the project showed that “The strategy calls for social protection most pension recipients no longer had for 40 per cent of the most vulnerable to beg, compared with two-thirds of older people. A universal pension, which non-recipients. Fewer pension recipients would be affordable at an estimated 1.1 described themselves as “always sick” per cent of GDP, would meet this target.” Stefan Hofmann/HelpAge International Hofmann/HelpAge Stefan – just over one-fifth, compared with more than one-third of non-recipients. Salt, soap and shoes for school The KwaWazee project has brought Children from homes receiving cash HelpAge International, 2008 more stability to older people and transfers not only ate better, but also had www.helpage.org/resources children. enough soap to last most of the month, and were absent from school less often. Comment The World Bank and IMF have long told Such social protection programmes are developing countries that they cannot affordable in even the poorest countries. afford such systems. This advice is now For example, a pension of US$8 per Spend to stimulate growth starting to seem rather hypocritical. month to everyone over 60 in Malawi In response to the current economic Economic growth needs to be generated would cost only 1.2 per cent of GDP and crisis, Barack Obama, Gordon Brown in developing countries by building would transform the lives of poor people and other world leaders have recognised social protection programmes that put while having a significant impact on the role that social spending can play cash into the hands of millions of poor economic growth. in stimulating the economy. They are people. In Namibia, the introduction Stephen Kidd proposing to spend billions expanding of a small pension in the 1990s for Director of Policy and Communications social protection programmes such everyone over 60 led to a significant HelpAge International as pensions, unemployment benefits, increase in market activity across the child benefits and tax credits. country. A&D25-AW-1.indd 2 4/3/09 12:39:20 3 Action on rights for older women Countries that have ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Antonio Olmos/HelpAge International Antonio Olmos/HelpAge Women (CEDAW) will in future be asked to consider older women when Older women will be they report on progress. included in reporting on rights. This will be part of a general recommend- ation on older women, which the CEDAW committee, at its 42nd session in Geneva in November 2008, decided to develop. The general recommendation will guide Research update the 185 countries that have ratified the convention on how they can better protect older women’s rights. A working group benefit scheme to help those worst Displaced in northern Uganda has been set up to draft it. affected. Older people displaced by the conflict HelpAge International welcomes this in northern Uganda are finding it Older people’s groups in eight move. “Many older women are subject to difficult to return home, a study shows. communities across four regions will abuse and discriminated against because find out how far the benefit reaches the Some 1.8 million people were displaced of their age as well as their sex and ethnic poorest people, using home visits and by the 21-year conflict between the origin,” says Bridget Sleap, HelpAge focus group discussions. They will Ugandan Government and the Lord’s International Rights Policy Adviser. also monitor inflation of staple items. Resistance Army, which ended in 2006. “In many countries, discriminatory laws The study is being coordinated by According to research by the UNHCR and and practice prevent older women from HelpAge International