NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 8 — Kenya needs to close the gap between recognising people as older persons at 60 and providing them with an Older Persons Cash Transfer at 70, Suqoon Founder Shakira Khawaja has said.
Khawaja said the country’s expanding social protection system must move beyond responding to crises and provide earlier support to protect older people’s health, income, independence and dignity.
Speaking at the Fourth Kenya Social Protection Conference at the Kenya School of Government in Kabete, she called for a clear pathway to bridge the decade-long gap in protection for older people.
“We worked hard for people to live longer. Now let us make sure our systems are ready for those longer lives, and that those lives are lived with function, contribution and dignity,” Khawaja said.
Suqoon, a Kenyan Public Benefit Organisation committed to ensuring older persons are valued, included and supported to thrive, is advocating for preventive approaches that address risks before they result in loss of health, mobility, income or independence.
Khawaja’s call comes as the Government moves to expand social protection, with President William Ruto committing to establish and capitalise a Social Protection Fund, make benefit indexation predictable and expand coverage to 2.5 million households.
Ruto, in a speech read on his behalf by Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua at the conference’s opening, also directed that a national school meals programme be rolled out across all 47 counties in the first term of 2027.
Ageing population raises pressure
The challenge is expected to grow as Kenya’s older population increases.
The number of Kenyans aged 60 and above is projected to rise from about 2.9 million currently to 6.4 million by 2045, according to specialists briefing the media ahead of Kenya’s inaugural International Day of Older Persons national celebration.
Khawaja said social protection and healthcare should be considered together, arguing that relatively small interventions can prevent health problems from becoming wider economic and social crises.
A fall at home, for instance, can lead to a fracture, hospitalisation, loss of mobility and dependence on family members, potentially forcing a son or daughter to leave work to provide care.
Suqoon, working with partners including Safaricom and the Chandaria Foundation, modifies older people’s homes to reduce the risk of falls.
“That grab rail is not just a renovation. It is health protection. It is caregiver protection. It is social protection,” she said.
Push for Older Persons Bill
Khawaja also called for stronger protection of older people’s income, property and assets from abuse.
She urged Parliament to take up the Older Persons Bill, 2024, which she said has not been tabled since public participation ended in 2024.
Additionally, she called for an assisted route to remain available to older people who cannot independently use digital payments and services.
Khawaja also urged a shift in how older people are viewed, highlighting their continued roles in raising grandchildren, farming, running businesses, sustaining chamas and supporting families.
“An elder is not where the life cycle closes. She is where it turns. When we invest in an older person, the return does not stop with her. It moves through the family, the community and into the next generation,” she said.
Social connection
Suqoon’s community activities in Mathare and Embakasi also focus on social connection among older people.
Ann Wanjiru Mbuthia, 64, Organising Secretary at Mathare Older Persons Network, said greater interaction between generations would help younger people better understand the needs and experiences of older people.
“There is a lot that younger people can learn from older people,” she said.
Peter Oyugi, 65, from Embakasi, said Suqoon’s activities give older people a reason to leave their homes and interact with others.
“Having this space gives us a reason to come out and feel part of the community,” he said.
The Fourth Kenya Social Protection Conference is being held under the theme “Re-imagining Social Protection in an evolving socio-economic landscape and climate change: Strengthening Adaptive, Transformative and Sustainable Social Protection Systems for Inclusive Development in Kenya.”
