"Peanuts" old age grant to be reviewed

Parliament recently agreed to lodge a request to government for the review of the old age pension grant rolled out to the elderly in Botswana. The current grant amount is a measly P430 per month. Last year, Selebi Phikwe West MP Dithapelo Keorapetse presented a motion for the grant to be reviewed comprehensively. He expressed concern that the amount was a paltry figure under the current economic conditions and that the elderly could not do much with the amount. He argued that most of the elderly are forced to take care of grandchildren; others live with disability or chronic health conditions or disability and also have several other expenses ranging from healthcare and home care. “The cost of living is too high.

The monthly allowance for the elderly cannot cover food, transport as well as electricity and water. It is therefore imperative for these figures to be reviewed,” he said at the time. He also argued that the old age pension cut off age should go down to 60, which is the age when most members of the active workforce retire. Government has on several occasions expressed interest in looking at different models that can be taken up to improve the welfare of the elderly in our society. Although Botswana has been lauded as a welfare state that takes care of the most vulnerable in communities through grants and food baskets (inclusive orphans, the disabled and elderly), there have been calls for more to be done to assist the elderly most of who are ostracised from active community life, live far away alone raising concern over their welfare.