The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has experienced an increase in life expectancy which means the mortality rate has reduced. This is a positive development with the growth of the elderly population reaching 32,433 in 2005 from 24,520 in 1995. However, this has meant an increase in the old-age dependency rate as the elderly population has grown faster than the working-age population after 2015. The rise of elderly poverty in the United Arab Emirates has become an issue. This could further increase between 2020 to 2050 from 311,000 – 3% of the population to 2 million – 19.7%. Unfortunately, there is no data on elderly poverty in the United Arab Emirates, according to the UNFPA report. But the literacy data can help with predictions. The illiterate population of men and women aged 60+ stands at 3.9% and 16.1% respectively, according to the same report, which puts them in a vulnerable state as during their working years they could earn less.

Lower Social Subsidy

Consequently, having a below pensionable income with lower social subsidy is financially constraining. These individuals are entitled to a subsidy of AED 1,095 which is less than their counterparts of average individuals who have a subsidy of AED 2,190, according to the Dubai School of Government 2013 policy brief. The recent governmental initiatives include the 2019 federal law. It grants the Emirati senior citizens rights such as the right to protection from violence and abuse, the right to social and medical care, the right to an enabling environment, housing, education and work, etc.

Additionally, the law covers penalties and fines for the mistreatment of the elderly and the social subsidy has been revised to AED 4,400. However, this excludes financially constrained individuals, according to the Dubai School of Government. To make matters worse, recently the pensionable salary has been increased, which further limits the benefits the elderly can access.

Under Family Care

Nevertheless, none of this prevents financial abuse. This abuse is more common than any other type of abuse and has resulted in elderly poverty in the United Arab Emirates. The older population lives a poorer quality of life than the normal standard, according to the Dubai School of Government. Inheritance issues prevail widely with children disputing over their parents’ wealth especially when the parents are illiterate or suffer from health conditions like dementia. Courts grant custody of the parents to the children which allows the children full access to their parents’ funds. Unfortunately, this occurs while the parents end up with no financial autonomy, the Dubai School of Government reports.

Furthermore, elderly abuse is common in poor families who cannot afford to take care of the elderly family members. They may also lack proper education in doing so. Moreover, due to work circumstances, the elderly members are home alone which leads to further negligence.

Reforms

Regarding financial abuse, more laws and procedures are necessary to protect the financial security of the elderly, says the Dubai School of Government. This could include improvements in the legal framework that limits guardians from accessing certain information about their wards. The Dubai School of Government states that enrolling in educational programs should be mandatory for the elderly to learn about self-reliance, vigilance and medical precautions that they need to adhere to.

With this in mind, a social startup Senior First has taken the initiative to cater to the elderly. It provides access to health and safety services that are cheap and offer discounts through a phone application. Many of these are government services that many elderly people do not know about. Among them is the TAMM Van. This is a transport service available at all locations with a 50% reduction in taxi fares.

Massarah Card offers discounts in the fields of medicine, banking and other services. In addition to the government entity, private enterprises like the telecommunication services of Du and Etisalat in collaboration with the government provide 50% and 60% discounts on phone plans.

Improving the Public Nursing Homes

The government can increase the number of public nursing homes by allocating one to every emirate instead of one for the whole country. On the other hand, it could subsidize private nursing homes, according to the Dubai School of Government. The government attempted to solve this in the form of the Thukher Card which provides discounts at private clinics, nursing homes and testing laboratories, according to Senior First.

Notably, elderly poverty in the United Arab Emirates is a concern despite the lack of coverage of the issue. A deficiency of coverage has led to a lack of public awareness which results in the persistence of this issue. Hence, prioritizing this age group is a must to not only eradicate their poverty but also prevent it from happening again.

  – Hafsa Dijoo 
Photo: Flickr