Ageing and Poverty in Africa: Ugandan Livelihoods in a Time of HIV/AIDS

by Alun Williams

Overview

This title was first published in 2003. The rapid demographic aging of populations worldwide, and most dramatically in developing countries, will result in unprecedented increases in the absolute and relative numbers of the aged in these countries. Whilst developed economies already have the basic infrastructure in place through which to support their ageing populations, developing nations frequently do not, and it should not be assumed that their best course of action is to attempt to duplicate the supportive infrastructures of developed countries. In developing nations these may be culturally inappropriate, geographically inaccessible, economically or politically unsustainable, or all of these. Effective and sustainable support services must be designed with reference to the circumstances of the client group, and it is increasingly evident that knowledge of the lives of the aged in developing countries is currently very limited. This book aims to inform the reader on the livelihoods of elders in developing countries and to stimulate a discussion of appropriate methods of supporting them in maintaining their quality of life during and beyond the coming decades of demographic change. It does so through reporting the lives and livelihoods of the aged population of Kikole (a pseudonym), a highly impoverished village in Uganda. Individual livelihoods are explored from a lifecourse perspective, with present day quality of life being shown often to be the result of earlier enforced changes in circumstances arising in economic, social or cultural marginalization, political or physical insecurity, or macro-economic change, rather than in the physical or mental changes that may accompany advancing age.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781351752213
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	10/24/2018
Series:	Routledge Revivals
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	272
File size:	7 MB

About the Author

Williams, Alun

Table of Contents

List of Figures, List of Tables, List of Text Boxes, Preface, Acknowledgements, Glossary, List of Abbreviations, 1. Ageing and Poverty in Developing Countries, 2. The Elders of Kikole, 3. Land Tenure and Usage, 4. The Rural Economy, 5. The Health of Elders in Kikole, 6. Elders' Social Status and Relationships, 7. The Impact of the HI V/AIDS Epidemic, 8. Vulnerable Livelihoods: Coping With the Challenges of Old Age, 9. Sustainable Livelihoods for the Aged?, Bibliography, Index

Editorial Reviews

There are very few books dealing with the social and economic impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. In this important and carefully researched book, Williams tells us much that is important about that impact on a much-neglected group, the rural elderly. He also opens important general perspectives on the position of elderly people in a poor rural society in Africa. Highly recommended: this should be on the "must read" list of anybody concerned with poverty, ageing and Africa. The book will also be of interest in relation to rural societies beyond Africa.

Tony Barnett