Social insecurity and vulnerability of the elderly to poverty: A case study of Morogoro municipality
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Date
2013
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Publisher
Mzumbe University
Abstract
Social insecurity and vulnerability of elderly are among problems that are still facing the elderly in Tanzania. This study was designed to assess how the elderly access social services, establish the magnitude and identify factors which contribute to increased social insecurity and vulnerability as well as assessing existence and adequacy of institutional support to these elderly in Morogoro Municipality. The study employed a cross-sectional study design which involved visiting and interviewing 96 elderly people from four wards namely, Chamwino, Mwembesongo, Kichangani and Boma. It was observed that the majority of male elderly were married (76.7%) while the majority of female elderly were widows (66.0%). It was also found that more than 90% of elderly persons interviewed were not employed. Fifty nine percent lived below poverty line. The majority (67.7%) of respondents were supported by their children and relatives while few reported to depend on crop farming (40.6%) or business (21.9%) for livelihood. Access to food and balanced diet was a big problem and approximately 40% reported to skip a lunch every day. The major complaints of the elderly on health services included lack of diagnostic facilities, unavailability of medicine and specialized clinics for the elderly diseases. A big number of elderly was suffering from chronic diseases (69.8%) and supporting other vulnerable groups such as orphans (53%). However, the support of government and private institutions for elderly was limited. It is concluded that the majority of elderly people in Morogoro Municipality are poor and consequently they are socially insecure and vulnerable. It is recommended that the Government should support them through provision of universal pension to all the elderly above 60 years to improve their social security. The formulation of laws and regulations to guide the implementation of the national ageing policy is pertinent.
Description
A dissertation submitted to Institute of Development Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for award of the Degree of Master of Science in Development Policy (Msc. DP) of Mzumbe University
Keywords
poverty and health services, social insecurity, health, health services, elderly diseases, Specialized clinics-elderly, Universal pension-elderly
Citation
APA