Centre for Policy on Ageing



Older people as resources in South Africa — Mpumalanga households
Author(s)	Sitawa R Kimuna, Monde Makiwane
Journal title	Journal of Aging & Social Policy, vol 19, no 1, 2007
Pages	pp 97-114
Source	http://www.tandfonline.com
Keywords	Grandparents as carers ; Social roles ; Multi generation families ; AIDS ; Rural areas ; Social surveys ; South Africa.
Annotation	The extended family used to be relied upon to provide subsistence and care for older people in sub-Saharan Africa. Recently, however, South Africa has seen a reversal of roles, where older people now provide subsistence and care to younger generations. This role reversal is being accelerated by HIV/AIDS deaths among young adults. In most rural households, the means-tested non-contributory old-age pension (OAP) is an important factor in making older people breadwinners. The authors use data from the 2004 Mpumalanga Older People's Survey to examine the changing role of older people, which has been influenced mainly by changes in household structure and old-age pension. Findings show that in 63% of matrifocal, multigenerational households, 76% of older people are the sole providers of household necessities, caring for the sick and grandchildren in households which have increasingly skipped a generation. (RH).
Accession Number	CPA-070612201 A
Classmark	P6:SW: TM5: SJC: CQTT: RL: 3F: 7PM
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing

...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing.