Does Ghana have the facilities to add to years on for the elderly?

Generally many parents in Ghana struggle with limited resources to see their children through education.

Many also mainly focus on where their next meal is coming from and are busy working on coping strategies. Hence, most of our parents fail to evaluate their own future lives and the way forward.

Does our Government look beyond the activities of the elderly in the planning of our health budget?

These are issues of concerns, which needs to be addressed by any Government in waiting or the current Government.

Does Ghana have a third Age University or college to encourage our elderly population to aspire to?

Has the Minister of Health considered workshop for the elderly in every town or villages?

Have the Regional District Commissioners conducted a skill audit in order to engage this group into a meaning workshop for our youth to gain a crucial grooming for the future generation?

The elderly would love to have a community centre designed for to visit perhaps once or twice a week to catch up with any developed relating to their welfare

Periodic lectures health talk on care of themselves, diabetic, arthritis, budget management, foot care, funeral planning, benefits of making a will, computer literacy etc, pottery sessions.

Token offered by the Mayor or the Regional Commissioner for the elderly to be eligible to attend these centres as above.

Offering of counselling sessions to the elderly as there may be many elderly-experiencing elder abuse who their relatives however they are too afraid to inform anyone.

Many elderly people would love to visit their birthplace before they pass away and community in which they live may need to consider organising mini trip to make this happen.

Village communities may need to consider helping the elderly regardless their family links. As human beings we need each other.

What chance does the elderly in Ghana have, if even young people are not paying their hospital bills what and are therefore being detained in hospitals.

Ghana has no state pension schemes and if one has no children to pick up the pieces the future is bleak.

It is about time Ghana have a Government who would walk in the shoes of an elderly with no direct family network feeling isolated with no hope for a hot meal let alone a small funeral?

It appears Ghana has links in almost every country in the world but then have we observe the assistance given to the elderly in some countries. It would be a good idea to try and emulate the goods aspects of a country, which would be beneficial to our nation too.

Funeral are becoming more and more expensive Ghana without us focusing on any living memory such donating a bench for a community park, planting a tree of the death of our loved one and others.

It is rather ironic that in the well developed world funerals are less expensive than the developing world. If one does not have off springs in Ghana than ones? future is very bleak and sometimes even if the elderly have spent monies educating relatives some are very ungrateful when the me, me, me factor sets in. The young people only concentrate on their own developments and not anyone else. Thus forgetting that these props (ie elderly ) would also need their help .

It appears that in Ghana, we honour the dead, than the living. Where does our priorities lies?

Many elderly people in developed countries do get some sort of help and there is a branch of specialist medical service for them. Government officials need to be more observant where ever they are representing Ghana and try and bring home some best practices throughout the globe.

Politicians may need to re- think again. These age group have contributed significantly to the economy of Ghana and as such deserve to be treated with some sort of dignity in their latter years. Given that NHIS is currently operational many people would contribute towards the scheme to enjoy the provision of Primary Health Care.

Our Government should also target those who can not afford to fend for themselves, let alone thinking of contributing towards NHIS.

The Minister of health has a responsibility to offer some contingency plans for these impoverish elderly people. Please never look down on them because their plight could anyone else?s too.

The Government has a job to do if aiming to attract more Ghanaians in Diaspora to come home for good.

Is there any provision made on the Government?s budget for the care of the elderly there by adding more years to life?????

Ghana Government please aim to target the most vulnerable in our society by this I mean people with learning difficulties, physically disabled bodied, the new mothers with very little or no income, children under 16 years and the elderly. There must be a pot of money somewhere from the poverty reduction budget, which could be spent in the implementation of these ideas, shared.

In the 1960, Ghana was very comfortable just like Britain, Malaysia etc but currently the gap is just too big and we appear to be left behind in the race to developments. No one wanted to remain in the cold country.

Ghana has a long way to go to catch up with the rest of the world.

Ghanaians feel let down by various Governments. The facts are that, sadly many of our elderly though out the country have actually enjoyed a true quality of life on their own soil in Ghana. Thus reflecting upon these experiences living in current trends becomes even bitter experiences.

Views expressed by the author(s) do not necessarily reflect those of GhanaHomePage.