By Ahmed Ubandoma
Stakeholders in the humanitarian sector have advocated the establishment of vocational centres for continuous engagement of senior citizens towards provision of professional services and counseling for the youth.
They made the call in Abuja on Tuesday, at the NSCC’s 2023 Service Fair with the theme: ”Equity by Design: Delivering Multi-sectoral inclusion for Older Persons”.
Speaking, the Director-General, National Senior Citizens Centre (NSCC), Dr Emem Omokaro, said that NSCC was working with relevant stakeholders in the country to ensure the establishment of the centre.
Omokaro posited that the older persons in the society were still agile, active and had a lot to contribute to the development of the society.
She said that the creation of the centre would help them to impact in-depth knowledge from their wealth of the experience to the youth.
She said NSCC had lined up programmes aimed at engaging senior citizens willing to continue offering services to host community and the country.
According to her, this will be made possible through NSCC’s continue engagement bureau.
She said that NSCC would also help to mainstream its intervention programmes to improve the quality of lives and welfare of older persons across states and local government areas.
”It has consistently been the challenge of the national systems in the Federal, states and local governments to recognise ageing as a development issue.
”Rather than view older persons as welfare recipients and to understand the rapid advancement of the teaming youth population into older age as holding significant implications,” she said.
The NSCC boss, therefore, stressed the need to support efforts toward addressing problems associated with the ageing population in the country.
“We understand that ageism and stereotypes diminish the value of older persons’ contributions to the society. This results in policies and practices that do not adequately utilise their skills, knowledge and experience.
”We also acknowledge the gaps in some programmes and we now designs new programmes using strategic pathways to mainstream older persons and create new opportunities,” she said.
Omokaro noted that this was purely attributed to the neglect and discrimination against older persons due to the ‘so-called old age’.
”We know older persons contribute tremendously to the economy, as some of their products are being exported outside the country,” the director-general said.
Dr Ovwe Sowho, the development partner working with NSCC to mobilise resources towards establishment of the centre, said that the idea was to bring the senior citizens together to help provide services for the young ones.
According to him, it is also to enhance continuous engagement and social interaction among the senior citizens.
“This will also serve as multipurpose centre, to provide a kind of intergenerational programmes, where senior citizens would be counselling the youth, because, most of these senior citizens are professionals in their careers.
”So, if there is any intervention programmes the centre would serve as a place for them to understand the programme.
”Especially, on the career the youth want to undertake, the senior citizens are there to support and counsel them on the right path to follow in their choosing career,” he said.
Sowho said the target was to establish at least one senior citizens centre per community with the aim of boosting social interactions and economic well-being of Nigerians.
He said that the private sector would be engaged to build the centres.
Also, Mrs Eduwa Usungbe, another stakeholder, urged the participants to collaborate in providing equal opportunities for older persons.
Usungbe expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs for its contribution to the welfare of senior citizens, adding that durable solutions should be provided to support them.
She added that retirement was not the end of life.(NAN) www.nannews.ng
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Edited by Chinyere Bassey/Isaac Aregbesola
