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Health For Mzansi

A forgotten generation: Urgent need for elderly care reform

In South Africa, older citizens like Nozala Ndoyana grapple with inadequate support and failing policies, highlighting a silent crisis where basic care and dignity are daily struggles

by Ivor Price
1st August 2023
in Trending
Reading Time: 3 mins read
A A
Elderly care: Nozala Ndoyana (84) in front of her home in Gwaba village, Eastern Cape, where she spends more than 12 hours a day alone when her daughter goes to work. Photo: Taurai Maduna/Human Rights Watch

Nozala Ndoyana (84) in front of her home in Gwaba village, Eastern Cape, where she spends more than 12 hours a day alone when her daughter goes to work. Photo: Taurai Maduna/Human Rights Watch

Tucked away in Gwaba village, a homestead some 36 kilometres from East London, lives the Ndoyana family. Their tale of daily struggle is a microcosm of the hardships encountered by older citizens across the nation.

The matriarch, 84-year-old Nozala Ndoyana, relies heavily on the care provided by her youngest daughter, Pamela. Despite her demanding 12-hour workdays, Pamela diligently cares for her mother, highlighting the strain borne by families across the nation.

“Even though I make her food, she may not think to eat it, and go without food all day,” she confesses. In Pamela’s absence, Nozala often wanders away, emphasising the urgent need for constant care.

Stories like these underpin the broader issues identified in the Human Rights Watch’s 68-page report, This government is failing me too: South Africa compounds legacy of apartheid for older people. The newly-released report criticises the government’s ineffective implementation of the Older Persons Act, legislation designed to safeguard the rights of older individuals and supply community- and home-based care and support services.

“Older people have been overlooked by a government that has neglected their rights,” declares Noma Masiko-Mpaka, a researcher at Human Rights Watch. This sentiment echoes the grim reality for individuals like Nozala, who spent much of their lives under apartheid’s racially discriminative policies, lacking access to quality education and decent work, and subsequently, unable to save for their old age.

A nationwide struggle

It’s not just families like the Ndoyanas feeling the strain. In River Park, Johannesburg, 75-year-old Ben Zolile’s health fluctuates. His failing knees prevent him from accessing a nearby service centre for older people.

“No one comes to my house,” he bemoans, “There are no other services that come to my home.”

Across the country in Dimbaza, Eastern Cape, Nosiphiwo Tetana manages a service centre for older people. She expresses the desperation of the situation: “Every week, every month [older people] come and apply. And we have to turn them away as we can’t overload the budget.”

The struggle to find affordable home-based care is a national problem, exacerbated by the shortcomings of the Grant-in-Aid. The programme, aimed at covering full-time home-based care costs, provides older individuals with R500 per month – a figure less than the R610 daily cost of care, based on the national minimum wage.

Pamela, grappling with the cost of her mother’s care, concedes, “I don’t think I can find someone who can look after her for R500 a month.” Her admission underscores the inadequacy of the programme and the widespread lack of awareness surrounding it.

As Noma Masiko-Mpaka concludes, “The department of social development should allocate sufficient funding to deliver community- and home-based care and support services so that older people can live independently in their homes and communities.”

Amid the stories of the Ndoyana family, Zolile, Tetana, and many others, it’s evident that the dignity and wellbeing of South Africa’s older citizens demand more than just political promises – they require tangible, immediate action.

  • The revealing insights and personal narratives in this article were obtained through interviews conducted by Human Rights Watch.

READ NEXT: Impepho: A mighty plant with spiritual and healing benefits

Ivor Price

Ivor Price

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HIV and initiation: Supporting boys through cultural rites Security fails as gangs target Eastern Cape clinics Dr Makanya blends spiritual healing with art therapy Canola oil: A heart-healthy choice for your kitchen No more pain! Tackle the torment of toothaches How smoking causes harmful bacteria in your mouth Discover delicious, healthy dishes that will make your heart sing Rediscover the joy of creamy pap with chicken livers