South Africa to join the world in commemorating International Day of Older Persons
The Department of Social Development will host a commemorative event to mark the International Day of Older Persons on October 1 in Laudium, Tshwane.
This event takes place at the beginning of Social Development Month, which runs throughout October. Social Development Month aims to engage communities to identify their challenges and put together action plans to deal with these challenges. The campaign, held in conjunction with the National Development Agency (NDA) and the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA), also aims to inform communities of the various social security programmes available to them and how these can be accessed.
Older persons are an important sector of society, and as people live for longer issues pertaining to the well-being of the elderly will continue to receive growing attention from policy makers. According to United Nations (UN), by 2050, the number of people over 60 living in Africa will increase from 50 million to 200 million.
Northern and Southern Africa are the most rapidly ageing regions on the continent and this huge demographic shift is going to have profound implications for society.
The 2015 Global Age Watch Index ranks South Africa second in Africa (behind Mauritius) in promoting the well-being of older persons through the income security, health, personal capability and an enabling environment measures.
The 2015 celebration is the 25th anniversary of International Day of Older Persons and will be observed under the theme: Sustainability and Age Inclusiveness in the Urban Environment.
It will focus on the impact of the new urban environment on older persons, as well as the impact of older persons on the new urban environment. In line with this focus, the Day will be commemorated under the sub-themes of celebrating active ageing, recognising older persons as assets of the nation and pillars of an active nation, as well as looking at ageing as a special gift.
The 2015 International Day of Older Persons celebration therefore seeks to demonstrate that an age inclusive agenda is crucial for sustainable urban environments to promote equity, welfare and shared prosperity for all.
The Minister of Social Development, Ms Bathabile Dlamini, will use this platform to interact with senior citizens from Laudium, Erasmia, Claudius, Attridgeville and Lotus Gardens as well as two informal settlements of Mooiplaas and Itireleng.
The engagement will help to advance Active Ageing objectives which include amongst others, improving the quality of life and well-being of the elderly.
Minister Dlamini, will also use the event to honour elderly women who live in Laudium and surrounding areas who participated in the 1956 Women’s march against pass laws.
Members of the media are invited to attend and cover the International Day of Older Persons event scheduled as follows:
Date: Thursday, 01 October 2015
Time: 12h00
Venue: Laudium Community Centre, Pretoria
Media can RSVP with Mr Jaconia Kobue on 073 026 1111 or jaconiak@dsd.gov.za
Media inquiries may be directed to:
Ms Lumka Oliphant
Cell: 083 484 8067
E-mail: lumkao@dsd.gov.za
