Mr. President
Honorable Ministers
Distinguished delegates
 

On behalf of President Thabo Mbeki, the Government and all the people of South Africa, I thank you for the opportunity to participate in the Second World Assembly on Ageing.
 

This Assembly is indeed significant and historic for our country. South Africa is taking part for the first time as a democratic country in this important gathering of world leaders. It is our hope that we will learn more through exchange of experiences on how the world and individual countries are tackling the challenge of building a world for all ages.
 

When the First World Assembly gathered in Vienna 20 years ago, our people were engaged in a bitter struggle against Apartheid. This system condemned the majority of people, especially older African persons, to the daily brutality of racial discrimination, political persecution, extreme economic exploitation and a lifetime of poverty.
 

We have come a long way since the first democratic elections in 1994. South Africa now has a Constitution, which includes a Bill of Rights, to promote equality and freedom for all its people, including its older citizens. We are fortunate that our struggle for democracy has produced great leaders such as Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, the late Oliver Tambo and many others.
 

They, as older persons of our country, epitomize the courage and the contribution older persons have made to freedom, democracy and human rights in South Africa.

The South African Government has introduced many pieces of legislation, policies and programmes to give effect to the Bill of Rights. However, the legacy of Apartheid is still with us, manifesting itself in severe poverty and social exclusion, especially for older persons. We have close to three million people aged 60 years and older, and the majority of these are poor. The fight against poverty, including poverty amongst older persons, is therefore the top priority of the Government.

Our Constitution states " everyone has the right to ....social security, including, if they are unable to support themselves and their dependants, the right to social assistance." Our programme of social grants to older persons is central to alleviating poverty amongst older persons. Each month, nearly 2 million older persons benefit from this non-contributory scheme. Older persons comprise fifty percent of all social grant beneficiaries and are recipients of two-thirds of the social grant budget.

We recognize that the current social grants programme does not meet the growing needs of older persons and we have put in place a number of measures to improve the conditions of older persons. These measures include income generation projects; access to free basic water; a housing subsidy scheme; and importantly, free primary health care.

In 1999, the International Year of Older Persons, the Government launched Operation Dignity to raise public awareness about the rights of older persons and to promote respect for older persons. Operation Dignity is now an ongoing campaign and increasingly, we are drawing in the youth to participate. The South African Human Rights Commission, which is a Constitutional body, is responsible for promoting and protecting human rights. The Commission has identified older persons as a group deserving special attention.
 

The challenge of building a better life for all in South Africa cannot be realized by Government alone. Indeed, much of what we have achieved to date has been through partnerships with various sectors of civil society. Most important, older persons themselves have played and continue to play an active role in their own development and in the development of their communities. Older persons embody the spirit of volunteerism that permeated our struggle for democracy.

In his State of the Nation Address in February this year, President Mbeki implored the nation to ask whether our collective efforts pre helping "...to lift from the shoulders of our people, the intolerable burden of poverty and underdevelopment." Our reply to this question in respect of older persons is that we have much to do to build a society for all ages.

A key challenge we face is the problem of abuse and violence against older persons. Many older persons are vulnerable to mental and physical abuse within their homes; within their communities; in residential care; and by uncaring government officials. The social grants of older persons are often the sole source of income for three-generation households, thus making older persons vulnerable to financial exploitation even by other members of their own families.

The Government established a Committee of Inquiry into abuse of older persons and has received comprehensive recommendations from the Committee. These recommendations have been adopted by the Government and are being implemented. Important amongst these is the development of new legislation on the Status of Older Persons, which will be tabled in Parliament later this year.

HIV/AIDS has social and economic consequences for many older persons, especially those living in poor rural communities. Older women in particular, have to care for their dying children and orphaned grandchildren. The consequences of this are financial hardship, social isolation and risk to their own health.

Support to older persons is vital and the Government has introduced HomeBased Care and Community-Based Care for families and children affected by HIV/AIDS. The Government considers this programme as essential to lessen the burden of care on communities and older persons and has allocated considerable financial resources to the programme.

One of the tragic consequences of Apartheid is the low rate of literacy amongst older African persons who, for decades, were denied access to an acceptable quality of education. The National Literacy campaign launched recently by the Government hopes to achieve a significant reduction in illiteracy. The need to expand our use of non-written communication to inform older persons about their rights has been identified and will be implemented soon.

We in South Africa recognize that we live in a globalising world. To that extent, partnership and co-operation with the international community, especially the African continent, are vital to our efforts on addressing ageing in a development context. Over the past two years, we have contributed to the deliberations on issues of ageing in the Organization of African Unity. The OAU will be replaced by the African Union in July this year and we in South Africa are honored to be hosting this historic event.

Ageing in the development context is one of the issues that need to be addressed in the New Partnership for Africa's Development, (NEPAD). NEPAD is a comprehensive programme conceived of by African leaders, for the development of Africa. Older persons, through their wealth of knowledge and through their position as custodians of values, can make an invaluable contribution to NEPAD. The challenge for South Africa and for the African Continent is to develop solidarity between young and old generations so as to achieve our ultimate vision for Africa in the 21St century.

In September this year, South Africa will be hosting the World Summit on Sustainable Development. The theme of the Summit - People, Prosperity and the Planet, speaks directly to the global challenge of the rapid growth in the number of older persons in developed and developing countries and the need to eradicate poverty in developing countries.

The South African Government is committed to the United Nations Principles for Older Persons and we will implement with vigor, the International Strategy on Ageing. Older persons are the custodians of our traditions, our heritage and our cultures. They reflect our past and are the mirrors of our future. They have the right to a healthy, productive life, to live in a caring environment and to be treated with respect. The older persons in our world deserve no less.

I thank you