Passage of Aging bill crucial to development agenda – NDPC/UNFPA report

About 30 years on after the Addis Ababa Declaration on Population and Development, which requires countries to make adequate and legally binding provisions for the aged, the country has yet to pass the Aging bill into law, with the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) citing impacts of the delay on development.

Although there are existing policies to protect the elderly, they insisted that they are enough and passing the Aging bill into law is crucial to the country’s development agenda.

This came to light during the launch of a report by the NDPC in collaboration with UNFPA. Dubbed the ‘Ghana Review Report on the 10-Year Implementation of the Addis Ababa Declaration on Population and Development and 30-Year Implementation of the International Conference on Population and Development’, the report noted that passing the bill will guarantee needed long-term care, as aging comes with some level of vulnerability that must be addressed with policies and legislation.

“Since the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in 1994, Ghana has formulated policies to protect the elderly population. The Addis Ababa Declaration on Population and Development (AADPD) aimed at promoting a culture of respect, support and active healthy aging for elderly persons to ensure they receive needed long-term care. Aging comes with many dimensions of vulnerability that must be addressed with policies and legislation,” part of the report read.

It further established that the existing Aging Policy is not effectively implemented due to absence of a National Aging Council and centralised coordinating body on issues regarding the aged.

Existing laws and policies which make provision for the elderly include the National Population Policy (Revised Edition, 2017), National Aging Policy (2010), Ghana National Social Protection Policy (2015) and Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP, 2008).

The National Aging Policy was implemented with the key objective of ensuring reintegration of the aged in all aspects of life. As part of efforts to improve health outcomes for the aged, persons aged 70 years and above are exempted from paying any premium under the NHIS; and vulnerable households that have elderly persons 65 years and above are eligible to receive cash grants under the LEAP.

“The aging policy is however not being implemented effectively because the National Aging Council has not been set up; leading to fragmented efforts, different definitions for the aged and a lack of centralised coordination – thus negatively impacting well-being of the elderly,” the report stated.

Among other assistance, as a means to improve targetting of vulnerable groups – especially the elderly and people living with disability – the report recommended a system that provides friendly rehabilitation centres for them.

The report also highlighted issues regarding gender-based violence, saying it persists due to negative traditional norms and practices, inadequate awareness and limited reporting mechanisms.

Other areas include child labour, teenage pregnancy, environmental and climate issues among others.

The NDPC in collaboration with UNFPA coordinated the review of Ghana’s 10-year implementation of the Addis Ababa Declaration on Population and Development (AADPD10) and 30-year implementation of the International Conference on Population and Development by engaging wide stakeholder consultations across development sectors and other levels of governance.

The objective is to identify and highlight areas of achievements to set the stage for government and relevant stakeholders to recommit for the future; and assess and report progress on implementation of the commitments contained in the ICPD and AADPD, highlighting the gains, gaps, best practices and challenges as depicted by data and evidence from a policy perspective.

It is also to make evidence-based recommendations that can accelerate progress on implementation at the national level; and to assist the nation toward actualising the AADPD’s vision and pave the way to harnessing the demographic dividend, advance human rights and ultimately attain sustainable development, in line with Agendas 2030 and 2063.

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