Objective: The sociodemographic change in Africa has brought the elderly into greater focus. The realities of economic recession and the plague of HIV/AIDS in most African countries have eroded the aura of wisdom, experience, and respect that surrounded old age in the traditional culture. This paper describes how the sociodemographic change in Africa has impacted on the elderly and suggests intervention measures of coping with problems of old age.
Design: A review work of relevant literature and use of hospital data.
Materials and Methods: Relevant literature and information on this topic were obtained from the WHO publications, Medline search, local articles and literature, local newspaper publications, hospital data and personal contacts.
Results: Between 1980 and 2001,the population of the elderly in Africa (>60 yrs) rose from 22.9 million to 38 million. The World Health Organization has projected that the increase would hit 101.9 million by 2025 and 212 million by 2050. The factors found to be associated with the sociodemographic change are increased longevity and death of youths in their economically productive years from HIV/AIDS, destructive effects of substance abuse and civil strife. The protective traditional culture with its extended family support system is rapidly fading because of the phenomenal increase of youth rural-urban migration, abject poverty and unemployment. Also, lack of social policy such as social security and/or health insurance for the aged in most of the African countries is compounding old people’s health, social, and economic problems. Some of the common physical and psychological disorders found among the elderly in Africa are arthritis, blindness, deafness, hypertension, dementia, depression and anxiety. Apart from these individual problems, aged people, particularly in East and South Africa, bear the burden of caring for the orphans of parents who died from HIV/AIDS infection. Similarly, health services for physical or mental disorders for the elderly are not readily available or affordable. In Nigeria, for example, many elderly people with or without disabilities wander about on the streets looking for food and shelter.
Conclusion: In order to cater for this expanding population of the aged in Africa, it is necessary to strengthen the traditional support system and establish/expand community-based support programs such as day-care centers, nursing home placements, and home visits. Also, each country in Africa should formulate specific social policy for the care of the aged including social security, health insurance scheme, free use of primary health care facilities in the neighborhood, and public awareness about problems and care of the elderly. It is essential in Africa to strengthen the youth through gainful employment to enable them contribute to the care of the aged.
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