KAMPALA, UGANDA: Government has announced plans to increase the money in form of “senior citizen’s grants” paid to the older person of 80 years and above from Shs 25,000 to Shs 35,000 monthly.
The development comes as Uganda joins the rest of the world in commemoration of the World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, a day celebrated every June 15 as an avenue to raise the voices against abuses and suffering inflicted on older persons.
This year the theme of the commemoration is: “Stop Elder Abuse: promote Healthy and dignified ageing for National Development.”
According to Hon. Dominic Mafabi Gidudu, the Minister for Gender, Labour and Social Development in charge of Elderly Affairs, the grant drastically changed the lives of many senior citizens and therefore government sought it wise to increase the amount to better off the elderly lives.
“As of January 2022, the programme was reaching 304,046 beneficiaries across the country. The grants have had a significant impact on the lives of older persons who receive them,” he said.
He said the ministry is engaging NIRA and the different arms of government to see how best older persons whose national identity cards have errors can be enrolled into the SAGE programme.
“We think as we go along, that amount will be increased and the age will be lowered to about 70 because we have realised that money helps a lot and in life is not how much you get is what you can do with what you get, “he said.
SAGE was introduced as a pilot project in 2010, specifically targeting labour-constrained older persons. Each beneficiary receives a monthly stipend of Shs25, 000.
At the start, the programme covered persons of 65 years and above but it was changed to 80 years in 2019, following Parliament’s recommendation for the programme to be extended to all districts.
According to the Uganda Retirements Benefits Regulatory Authority (URBRA) annual report 2017, as of March 2018, at least 190,466 of Ugandans aged 65 plus were covered by SAGE.
The National Population Census of 2014 indicates that persons between 60 and 64 make up 1.3 per cent of the population. Those that are 65 and above make up 2.7 per cent, bringing it to a total of 4.1 per cent. Social protection programmes are put in place to ensure that nationals can afford a decent life in times of vulnerability. Example in Uganda is SAGE and the National Social Security Fund.
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