The Department of Social Development in partnership with the South African Older People Forum (SAOPF) invites elders nationally to join these programmes which are hosted in their neighbourhoods. The Programme will be hosted for 5 days at the Nelson Mandela University Indoor Sports Centre from the 21st of October. The aim of this project is to encourage elders to stay active, healthy and socially engaged.
This year the senior citizenship project focused on the use of modern cellphones and the importance of understanding technology. Kgosietsile Letsebe, a participating senior citizen said “I am old school, so I’ve always been afraid of technology because I don’t trust it. One of the goals of this programme was to familiarize the elders with technology and improve the quality of their health. According to the Minister of Social Development, Lindiwe Zulu the key to this programme is to encourage the elderly not to shy away from technology. She adds that technology should not be a fear to anybody, elders watch television and they have grandchildren who need help with homework and that’s where the use of technology could come into play.
The programme also promotes the participation of older persons in healthy and active ageing initiatives that seek to prevent or reduce the old-age related burden of diseases. During the week-long programme, older people will receive free health screenings and also learn about age-related health issues such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. As part of promoting a healthy and active lifestyle among older people, the department of social development has partnered with the Virgin Active Health Club in Port Elizabeth. A 30 Minute Light aerobic exercise routine which will be conducted by a fitness instructor from Virgin Active has been arranged for the participating elders.
Department spokesperson Lumka Oliphant said the programme’s goal was to improve the quality of life of older people by, among other things, promoting independence and participation in various social, cultural and sporting initiatives that seek to prevent and reduce old-age related diseases.“ This is part of the department’s effort to build a caring society that promotes and protects the human rights of people of all ages,” Oliphant said. She adds that “the department of social development provided financial support to a number of NGOs which rendered care and support services to older people, almost three-million received income support in the form of the Old Age Grant, which has significantly reduced extreme poverty among older people.
