Welcome Address by Senator Dr. Eze Ajoku, President of the Coalition of Societies for the Rights of Older Persons in Nigeria
On the occasion of the 2nd National Conference on Ageing

Theme: JOURNEY TO AGE EQUALITY: THE SOCIETY AND THE OLDER PERSON: THE NIGERIAN PERSPECTIVE.

Your Excellencies, distinguish Ladies and Gentlemen, fellow Laboureres in the affairs of Older Persons, gentlemen of the Press, our older persons, and our school children.

It gives us great joy to welcome you all to the 2nd National Conference on Ageing, with the theme- “Journey to Age Equality: The Society and the Older Persons:- The Nigerian Perspective” with a key note topic: “Taking the Rights and Privileges of Older Persons in Nigeria to the Next Level”. On behalf of COSROPIN, We wish to thank you all for finding time, in spite of your burdens of commitments to come.

The issue of Nigerian Older Persons begs for National attention. Often we misrepresent Nigerian Older Person (Senior Citizens) with only those of us who live in the metropolitan cities of Abuja, Lagos and Kaduna etc. As I said at the first National Conference, there are diverse older persons in different living conditions. Majority of them lack access to healthcare and support systems, Medicare, housing, nutrition, financial inclusion and social protection rights and vocational engagement. Many have been reported to be abused and in most cases neglected. Many older persons are retired from civil service, having committed their labour to nation building in different capacities during their youth but are now denied their basic privileges in their later ages. Without social security and safety nets, older persons have become objects of ridicule in many communities; in fact they have become endangered species waiting to die.

The irony is that yearly, a huge number of Nigerians transit into elderly status, since ageing is maturation that everyone must go through, some older persons age with fear of the unknown as they look at those before them. Some of those planning to retire devise various means to help themselves since they see no plans for care and support services of those ahead. This sometimes may lead to corrupt practices for self insurance.

As has been said, ageing is not an accident or an emergency situation, but a transitory period of maturation, a process that everyone who hopes to grow old must go through by God’s grace. Therefore, the government and its planning agencies and stakeholders must capture these transitions and make policy provisions for ageing.

Part of the objectives of this 2nd National Conference is to sensitize government at all levels (Federal, State and Local Government) and the organized private sectors on the plight of Senior citizens so as to enable them formulate policies for the well-being of Older Persons. It is hoped that by this conference multi-stakeholder interventions towards developing a National blue print for sustainable social investment and actions for older persons will be put in place. Currently our older persons are denied many rights and privileges and in many cases abused by their care-givers and family. Intervention actions expected from Government and stakeholders will be:

Prohibition of discrimination against older persons, old age grants, rights to liberty, tax rebates, mandatory health insurance coverage, government assistance, social security and protection, rights to improved standards of living, mobility rights in terms of structure and transportation, rights to adequate housing, discounts, special care including long term care, humanitarian emergencies, rehabilitation, rights to education and life-long learning opportunities, free health care, monthly stress free payment of their pension etc. Many of these issues we have included in our bill we submitted.

The current four Social Investments Programme (NISP), of the Federal Government was to focus on ensuring a more equitable distribution of resources to vulnerable population including youths, children and women to the exclusion of the older persons. This programme has supported more than four million Nigerians but without the older persons. A review of this shows that; (1) N-Power is for youths, (2) Home grown School Feeding is for children, (3) Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) Micro-lending intervention targets traders, artisans enterprising youths, farmers etc. (4) The conditional cash transfer (CCT) which should support the very poor to improve nutrition and household consumption in our opinion should have been addressed to older persons. The support from CCT is conditional in fulfilling soft and hard co-responsibilities which older persons may not meet. We therefore appeal to government to seriously look into the issues of Nigerian Older Persons and create a special social-economic security and welfare package to cater for their feeding, transport, medication and security needs. Let me summarize what actions COSROPIN expect from this conference:

REQUIRED ACTIONS

1. THERE SHOULD BE GOVERNMENTAL SPECIFIC ACTION PLANS TARGETTED AT OLDER PERSONS.

2. THERE SHOULD BE IN PLACE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC POLICIES SUPPORTING THE ELDERS’ CAPABILITIES, WELL-BEING AND AUTONOMY

3. THERE SHOULD BE ESTABLISHED SOCIAL POLICIES, DELIVERING STANDARDS UNIVERSAL PENSIONS AND BETTER ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE.

4. THE CARE OF THE OLDER PERSONS SHOULD NO LONGER RELY ON FAMILY SUPPORT BY RELATIVES ALONE. DAY CARE CENTERS FOR OLD PEOPLE AND OLD PEOPLE’S HOMES FUNDED BY GOVERNMENT SHOULD BE ESTABLISHED IN COMMUNITIES.

5. THERE SHOULD BE A LEGAL FRAMEWORK TO BACK-UP EFFORTS IN THE ADVOCACY FOR CARE OF OLDER PERSONS.

6. THERE SHOULD BE A COMMISSION FOR AGEING AND OLDER PERSONS – A BILL ON THE ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL COUNCIL ON AGEING IS ALREADY IN THE HOUSE. WE BELIEVE TWO VULNERABLE GROUPS IN NIGERIA NEED THEIR OWN COMMISSIONS; THESE ARE THE OLDER PERSONS AND THE PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED.

COSROPIN believes strongly that a legal framework is needed to define the Rights and Privileges of Senior Citizens/Older Persons in Nigeria, if the care of the older persons is to be taken seriously. On our part, COSROPIN made genuine efforts and came up with a Draft Bill Proposal that we felt would address the Rights, Privileges and issues and concerns of the older persons. This Draft Bill Proposal by COSROPIN titled “A Bill for an Act to provide certain Rights and Privileges in order to ensure Health and Economic Relief and Protection for their Social and Civil Rights and for other related matters” was presented by COSROPIN on the 29th of March, 2018 to the former Senate President Dr. Bukola Saraki and copy presented at the Public seating of the House Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development. COSROPIN also strongly supported and made great contribution at a public hearing by the committee on Women Affairs and Social Development on a Bill titled “An Act to Establish the National Council of Ageing so as to provide Social Welfare Services for the Elderly and for purpose of designing Development Programmes and activities for the advancement of Elderly persons in Nigeria and for related purposes 2015. There are yet other Bills on the floors of the Senate/House concerning Older Persons that have not surfaced again after public hearing. These include but not limited to; Senate Bill for an Act to establish a National Agency for Elderly Persons – 2009, An Act to establish a National Council on Ageing so as to provide Social Welfare Services for the Elderly (National Council for Elderly Person’s establishment Bill) – 2005, A Bill for an Act to establish Social Security Agency for the Elderly – 2004, A Bill For an Act to Provide Certain Rights and Privileges for Older Persons in order to Ensure Health & Economic Reliefs and Protection for their Social and Civil Rights and for other related matters – COSROPIN 2016. COSROPIN hereby calls on the National Assembly to kindly expedite actions on these and other Bills that will improve the welfare of older persons in Nigeria.

COSROPIN is indeed grateful to His Excellency- Mr. President for giving assent to the Bill on the National Senior Citizen Centre Act. We in COSROPIN await its domiciliation and implementation. Some Nigerians do not favour Old People’s Homes which we need many more well managed ones, whilst others prefer but Old People’s Day Care Centers where they can interact regularly in the day and go back home in the evening. Loneliness kills and many older persons are lonely. These two nursing homes for long term care are urgently needed in all our states and local governments.

We wish to congratulate the Ministry of Women Affairs and The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Welfare on the validation of the National Policy on Ageing (for older persons in Nigeria) at its 2 days recent stakeholders’ meeting. COSROPIN was duly recognized as a major stakeholder. We joined to take the driver’s seat in ensuring Nigeria has an enduring document that will serve as the context and content for national legislations that will aggregate the Rights and Privileges of Older Persons. We hope this will be ratified today as the Ministry of Women Affairs and its 36 state Ministries of Women Affairs meet in Ondo State at their National Council Meeting.

Your Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, this 2nd National Ageing Conference with the theme: Journey to Age Equality- The Society and Older Persons; The Nigerian Perspective, with a keynote topic: Taking the Rights and Privileges of Older Persons in Nigeria to the Next Level, we believe, will focus the government, stakeholders and the general public on the hardship and challenges of Older Persons in Nigeria. We believe it will motivate policy makers, who themselves will join the ranks of older persons in a few years”, to formulate policies/strategic implementation plans for the well being of older persons. The youth of today is the old man of tomorrow. Old age is a blessing that everyone should prayerfully seek. Nigerians, do not abandon your older population.

We want to salute the sacrifice, dedication and efforts of all Non- Governmental Organisations (NGOs), Community Based (CBOs), Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), Retirements groups and individual in the academia and others who have made huge sacrifices to be at this Second National Conference. What binds us together is the denied Rights of Older Persons in their care and wellbeing. The work of many of you as we saw yesterday is profound and sacrificial. Many without support but driven by love and passion for the Older Persons have achieved milestones in the care of the vulnerable populations. We thank you all. In the care of Older Persons, there is neither competition nor first position. Our passions and love cannot be rewarded. There is so much to be done and united we believe a lot more will be achieved. We recognize and honour those who are front runners and the task ahead requires a different approach, Team work and strong networking to support, encourage and cheer each other to see that Government at all levels and stakeholders have policies at all levels to ensure Older Persons are taken care of adequately. That our institution recognizes the place of Ageing, more Geriatric doctors trained both by our private and public institutions. Appropriate provision and care for the Older Persons with mental health issues by reequipping, retooling our psychiatric hospitals and the personnel.

We welcome Your Excellencies, Ladies and gentlemen once again to this auspicious event and seek your robust contribution to efforts to better the living conditions of Nigeria’s present hero’s who temporarily are neglected and excluded for our developmental plans and programmes. Please turn around and say “Age Gracefully to your Neighbour”.

COSROPIN is a good platform for us to unite and develop strong Ageing and Gerontology support for our Older Persons.

God Bless You for coming.

Thank you.

SENATOR DR. EZE AJOKU - President,COSROPIN