The Director-General of the National Senior Citizens Centre, Dr. Emem Omokaro, has revealed that individuals in Africa are now living longer than they did 20 years ago, with an 11-year rise in life expectancy.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, Omokaro made this statement during the 61st session of the UN Commission for Social Development in New York.
At the UN’s headquarters, CSocD61, the advisory body for the social development pillar of global development, began meeting on February 6 and will conclude on February 15.
Omakaro, who represented Nigeria, according to NAN, delivered the declaration on behalf of 54 African nations, on the: “Statement of Africa on Fourth Review and Appraisal of the Madrid Plan of Action on Ageing in Africa 2018-2022: Key Findings and Recommendation,”
According to her, life expectancy in Africa rose from 51.7 years in 1990–1995 to 62.4 years in 2015–2020, or a 10.7–year gain in noticeably older ages.
She said that on average, persons in their 60s may anticipate living another 17 years.
“Africa’s population of people aged 65 or older has increased from about eight million (3.5 per cent) in 1950 to about 50.3 million (4 per cent) in 2017.
“This figure is estimated to more than triple to 173.6 million by 2050,” she said.
According to Omokaro, the review and appraisal’s goals were to assess how well African nations were implementing MIPAA and to talk about methods to speed up the process.
The 2002-adopted MIPAA provides a thorough action plan for addressing the issue of ageing in the 21st century and creating a society for all ages.
It concentrates on three core areas: guaranteeing enabling and supportive environments, improving health and well-being throughout old age, and older people and development.
She said, “We have 110 million older persons in Africa. And the speed and rates, the rates and the pattern of growth is not the same for all the sub regions.
“The northern and southern region are growing at a faster pace. And then the central and the Western, moderate to new.
“However, the general population is growing and is expected to move from 6.6 per cent in1992 to 8.3 per cent. That’s quite huge.
“We are touting the African continent to be a youthful continent, which is true, the absolute numbers of older persons are increasing, along with the challenges.
“It is also growing along with the opportunities that are there to exploit for economic growth.”
The Nigerian delegate stated that the analysis demonstrated how the demographics of elderly people were highly relevant in Africa and could not be disregarded because they were expanding at a rate that was 0.9% faster than the total population.
Second, according to Omokaro, some member states have used MIPAA as an opportunity to create their own national policies about aging.
She said that certain nations, such as Nigeria, had created National Plans of Action on Aging, which served as the country’s strategic guide to addressing the issue of aging in place of merely formulating national policies.
“The added advantage that compels implementation of MIPA is the legislation and Nigeria has also done that.
“So, we found in the review that the member states in Africa that have made considerable progress and implementation of MIPAA are those that have national legislations.
“Also, we found out that those countries making progress are those that have established entities focusing on ageing and have developed coordination and partnerships with other Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDA),” she said.
Omokaro stated that 18 African nations, or nearly one-third of the continent, had created extensive National Policies on Aging, plans, and diverse programs to carry out the MIPAA’s main areas.
According to NAN, MIPAA is the first global agreement that binds governments to connect aging-related issues to other frameworks for social and economic growth and human rights.
Moreover, it demands that governments involve senior citizens in the formulation of policies.
The MIPAA is a voluntary initiative supported by 159 Member States, including Nigeria, but it has no official legal standing.
Every five years, the Plan is subject to a participatory review, in which older persons are encouraged to participate.
