The Senior sector has always been particularly close to my heart, which is why I couldn’t wait to blog about it. I suspect that it is the love I have and the closeness I share with my own grandparents that has made me compassionate towards older person’s issues. However, when you examine these issues in a South African context, there emerges an urgent call to action. A call that Ikamva Labantu has responded to.
Think about it…many of those in the current senior population were on the front lines of the struggle against apartheid and fought to bring this country to where it is today. Ikamva Labantu sees older persons and their wisdom and experience as an essential asset to the community. Besides it being an injustice not to support and empower those who did so much for this country, it is a disservice to the communities in which they live. But beyond that, largely due to the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the changing family dynamics in the townships, this vulnerable population has been charged with the task of raising the future generation of South Africans.
I would like to share an excerpt from a recent official Ikamva Labantu report on the Senior sector. This was the report that originally peeked my keen academic and emotional interest in the issues of seniors in the townships. I even forwarded excerpts of this report to my own grandparents.
“ Older Persons are one of the most vulnerable populations in the townships due to a lack of government and community provisions to accommodate their unique health and social needs as seniors. Furthermore, the HIV/AIDS epidemic has created an unmanageable number of orphans who are often left in the care of their grandparents. Seniors are becoming increasingly responsible for the care of children, grandchildren, and in some cases great-grandchildren at a time in their lives when their own physical and cognitive function may be deteriorating. The community is placing additional burdens on the sector of the population that is least prepared to support it. Additionally, income earning potential for these grandparents is limited, creating desperate situations for vulnerable families throughout the townships.”
As a response to these issues, Ikamva Labantu has developed the Senior Sector. The programme serves more than 650 seniors in 17 senior centres known as senior clubs in the townships. Services provided at the senior clubs include daily activities such as nutritious meals, exercises, craft making, food gardening and health services as well as psychosocial support and assistance in accessing government grants.
Each club is headed by a club assistant. Club assistants are Ikamva Labantu employees who work in the field at the senior clubs to facilitate activities, maintain records, deliver services, conduct health monitoring and lead discussions. They connect with the seniors on a personal level and are able to serve as a direct, two-way link between Ikamva Labantu and its beneficiaries.
In order to fully understand the depth and importance of the work of the Senior Sector, I decided to dig a little deeper. I will attend a sector workshop analyzing the programme and discussing how to improve and optimize it. I will also be fortunate enough to spend a day at a senior club and interact with the seniors, something I have been just itching to do since I started my work here.
I cannot wait to see how these new experiences will inform my own awareness of the real issues facing seniors in some of the poorest communities in Cape Town. Even more so, I truly hope that by blogging about these experiences, I will be able inform YOUR understanding of these issues and of how Ikamva Labantu is working to address them.