Center for
Aging
in Uganda
The People
of UgandaUganda is a land-locked country in East Africa about the size of Oregon, with 43 million people speaking 43 languages. Kisoro is a district capital of 13,000 in far southwestern Uganda, just miles from the borders with Rwanda and The Congo. Kisoro District is a beautiful agricultural area, 6000 feet high, dotted with terraced fields on hillsides, lakes, and rural villages.
The 5000+ older adults of the Kisoro Elders Project, 4600 of whom are beneficiaries of interventions, live in 52 rural villages in Kisoro District. They range in age from 60 to >100 and comprise 7% of the population. This is a greater proportion than the national average of 5%, likely due to the urbanization of many middle-aged adults, seeking work as successive generations have inherited smaller and smaller plots of land, as well as the loss of many in the middle generation to HIV/AIDS.
Kisoro Elders live in small, widely-spaced family compounds of 2-10 small houses. 86% are subsistence farmers, and most meet the WHO criteria for abject poverty (living on <$2 per day). Most have no electricity, plumbing, or running water.
Despite their limitations, Kisoro Elders are remarkably resilient and functionally independent. They make valuable contributions to their families and communities, continuing to farm, help with household work, care for children, and preside over family decision-making. Yet many barriers to receiving health care exist, and with few exceptions, families are the only sources of social support.
The population of older adults in Uganda, like that in all developing countries, is growing rapidly. Currently, there are 1.5 million adults above the age of 60, representing 5% of the population. That number is projected to grow to 6 million by 2050. The health care needs of older adults are not addressed by the Ugandan health care system, and any social safety net that exists is largely the responsibility of families. Although older persons have traditionally held a place of reverence in Ugandan society and most older adults are respected and supported by their families, a number of sociological factors have eroded support for older adults, including urbanization, especially of young and middle generation adults seeking jobs, and shrinking amounts of land available to be inherited by the young, thereby limiting wealth distribution. This has resulted in a growing incidence of physical, verbal, and financial abuse of older adults, and not-rare incidents of abandonment and neglect. Despite this, older adults continue to be far more likely to be contributing members of their families and communities rather than burdens, providing help in the fields, child care, home support, and the accrued wisdom and diplomatic skills of age.
Article About Our Program
The Center for Aging in Uganda at Kisoro District Hospital was established in February 2024 to advocate for improvements in the health care and social welfare systems for older adults. It seeks to accomplish this by:
Availablility
Making available to any group or community interested in helping older adults the training materials of The Kisoro Elders Project. The Kisoro Elders Project has been operating since 2017 to provide screenings and interventions for common problems of older adults through the Village Health Worker system in 52 rural villages of Kisoro District. Older adults having problems with Vision, Hearing, Mobility, Pain, Depression, Dementia, and Energy Poverty have been identified and have received low cost interventions that have effected immediate improvements in quality of life. The Kisoro Elders Project training materials will be available on the website of The Center, the training staff of the Kisoro Elders Project will be available for consultation and teaching, and visiting training scholarships will be available for representatives who have the potential to implement parts or the whole of The Kisoro Elders Project, with appropriate modifications, in their communities.
Awareness
Highlighting not only the health and social welfare needs of older adults, but also their contributions to their families, communities, and Ugandan society. Recognition of their important roles in Ugandan society underscores the need to provide sources of support in addition to traditional family support.
Advocacy
Acting as an advocacy group for improvements in the health care and social welfare systems of Uganda to benefit older adults. This will be achieved through partnerships with both academic and governmental groups.