Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!
09 August 2023
Post No. 312
The Week’s Contents
• FACS Issue No. 80, Summer 2023: Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty
• Following the Direction of Poverty Reduction this Summer via Marine and Coastal Ecosystem Services, Trending Topic in Focus from Wednesday 09/08/2023: Regulating Services
• Happiness and Healthiness Journal 2023, Creative Activity No. 3: Create Your Journal of Happy and Healthy Life Expectancy
And much more!
Key Messages
• FACS Issue No. 80, Summer 2023: Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty
CENFACS’ 80th Issue of FACS, which deals with ‘Pension and the Reduction of the Old Age Poverty in Africa‘, shows how pension can be used to reduce poverty amongst the older generation in Africa. It is an investigation on ways of allowing poor people to continue to consume after they have stopped working without getting into consumption poverty. As a discussion on the alignment of pension at or above the poverty line, the Issue is a raw story of building sustainable retirement to avoid multi-dimensional poverty in the old age.
To narrate this story, the Issue No. 80 refers to economic theories of pension or economics of pension like the ones of Barr and Diamond (1) to explain the links and relationships between pension and the old age poverty, to inspect the correlation between universal (untargeted) social pension and old age poverty reduction in Africa.
Indeed, there are studies that have been done on pension and old age wellbeing. For example, Nicholas Barr and Peter Diamond (op. cit.) argue that the aim of pension is to ensure economic security in old age. Within this aim, Barr and Diamond provide the following objectives of pension: consumption smoothing, insurance, poverty relief and redistribution. They also include other objectives of pension like economic development and economic growth.
The Issue No. 80 focuses on the objectives of poverty reduction and sustainable development with the aim of ensuring sustainable security in the old age. The aim of sustainable security embodies the need to address the interconnected drivers of insecurity for the elderly by including economic, environmental and social sustainability for them while going beyond these well-known elements of sustainability.
The Issue No. 80, which takes a micro-economic view of pension, nevertheless revisits the impacts of non-contributory pension programmes – for countries that run them – on poverty reduction and sustainable development. This revisit helps to understand how for example Africa-based Sister Organisations are organising themselves to create and innovate pension support to the elderly of the communities they serve to reduce and possibly end old age poverty.
Given that the current Africa’s economic growth is not enough to reduce poverty, the Issue No. 80 explores ways of equating minimum pension and average income to help reduce old age poverty in this restricted context of limited economic growth.
The Issue No. 80 uses classes of measures about poverty indicators (such as poverty gap ratio) in order to advocate what needs to be done to support elderly Africans, who are beneficiaries of project run by our Africa-base Sister Organisation, who cannot rely on family support to get the backup they need.
In this respect, the Issue No. 80 provides some ideas about how Africa-based Sister Organisations can support and/or are supporting the elderly to get away from overlapping crises (including pension crisis) faced by Africa and protect their insurance. They are doing it by helping them to access cash transfer programmes for the elderly.
To get a glimpse of the way in which pension can be used to reduce poverty amongst the older generation in Africa, please read the summaries presented under the Main Development section of this post.
• Following the Direction of Poverty Reduction this Summer via Marine and Coastal Ecosystem Services, Trending Topic in Focus from Wednesday 09/08/2023: Regulating Services
In this 2nd trending topic, we would like to look at the meaning of Regulating Services and the way in which we are going to follow the direction of poverty reduction via these services.
• • Basic Meaning of Regulating Services
Before looking at the definition of regulating services, it is worth mentioning that within the literature regarding regulating services some writers speak about regulating services while others prefer the expression regulation services. However, by looking at the two expressions, they both mean the same thing. What do regulating services mean?
According to the ‘ocean-climate.org’ (2),
“The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment defined four types of ecosystem services. Marine and coastal ecosystems produce various services including provisioning, supporting, regulating and cultural services. Regulating services [are] carbon sequestration and storage, erosion prevention, waste-water treatment, moderation of extreme events”.
The website ‘frontiersin.org’ (3) explains that
“Regulating and maintenance services are the services that mediate key processes that maintain our marine and coastal environments and their value are often overlooked. These services are often referred to as indirect or non-market values and are typically more difficult to assign a monetary value”.
Whether one talks about regulating or regulation services, these are the services we would like to look at in terms of our journey with them to poverty reduction.
• • Following the Direction of Poverty Reduction via Regulating Services
Regulating services provide erosion protection and climate regulation. Mangroves and reef systems can protect coastal poor who are vulnerable to exposure to flooding and damage linked to climate changes. This is particularly true for poor concentrated and living at lower elevations with the high probability to floods, storms surges and sea level rise. In this respect, regulating services decrease the vulnerability of coastal poor. Because of that, can we argue that there could be links and relationships between regulating services and poverty reduction?
• • • Possible links and relationships between regulating services and poverty reduction
The analysis conducted by Katrina Brown et al. (4) about the vulnerability of the poor to loss of regulating services found that
“Poor coast population with 100km of coral reefs and mangroves would benefit from the regulating services provided by ecosystems” (p. 36)
Studying the impact of climate change on coastal communities, Katrina Brown et al. (op. cit.) discovered that
“The value of regulating services for the poor may change as a result of increased disturbance. That the increase risk of storm surges will increase the reliance on the regulating services of mangroves, reefs and marshes to protect from erosion and inundation” (p. 47)
By quantifying links and relationships between ecosystem services and poverty, they conclude that the role of regulating services in poverty alleviation was not clear. According to them, the role of regulating services in protecting livelihoods of the poor is extremely important but their role in active poverty alleviation is no direct and less clear.
• • • How can you help in following the direction of poverty reduction via Regulating Services?
Each of our members and supporters can follow the direction of poverty reduction via regulating services.
For those of our members, supporters and audiences heading towards coastal areas this Summer, they can enquire how regulating services are helping coastal poor to reduce poverty.
For those who have stories with hard evidence on this matter, they can as well add their inputs by contacting CENFACS with their stories and or data.
For example, those who may have opportunity to talk with coastal poor communities about the impacts of Marine and Coastal Ecosystem Services on them, they can share their findings with us.
To follow the direction of poverty reduction via regulating services with us, please contact CENFACS.
• Happiness and Healthiness Journal 2023, Creative Activity No. 3: Create Your Journal of Happy and Healthy Life Expectancy
To create a Summer Journal of Happy and Healthy Life Expectancy, one may refer to the context of Summer. This Summer 2023 is being of the lingering impacts of the coronavirus, the damaging effects of the fall in real household disposable incomes and extreme temperatures.
• • A Summer Journal of Happy and Healthy Life Expectancy in the Context of Lingering Effects of the Coronavirus, the Damaging Effects of the Fall in Real Household Disposable Incomes and Extreme Temperatures
The lingering effects of the coronavirus continue to challenge, threaten and in some situations destroy lives and livelihoods. Life expectancy (that is the statistical measure of the average time someone is expected to live) has also been tested as many people got ill from the coronavirus pandemic or had to get a double or treble jab or tested against COVID-19 germs. This can make people unhappy while feeling unhealthy.
Likewise, the damaging effects of the fall in real household disposable incomes as a result of cost-of-living crisis can create some doubt about happy and healthy life expectancy. Rising interest rate and stubborn inflation can only make those who struggle to make ends meet feel unhappy and unhealthy. This is because those who cannot afford the cost of living would worry about their life and the future. This worry and the lack of means, particularly financial and psychological means to handle the cost of living, could mean their living has no purpose, no meaning and no expectation.
Furthermore, extreme temperatures that are the result of changing climate can only affect the way we live, eat, dress, shelter, travel, etc. They can challenge set habits, cultures and values. Changing climate can bring some concern for those who cannot cope and do not have support to deal with rising temperatures, drought, etc. This can affect life expectancy or their expectation to live longer as well. For example, one can consider factors that determine life expectancy.
• • Factors Determining Life Expectancy
Amongst these factors are socio-economic status, lifestyle, ethnicity, migrant status and education. One can use one of these factors and write a journal on how the selected factor is contributing to their happiness and healthiness, therefore to their life expectation this Summer 2023. One needs to bear in mind the context of this Summer 2023.
So, as part of Summer of Happiness and Healthiness, one can create a journal for the things that and people who are bringing or have brought expectation of living a happy and healthy life during this Summer of rising costs of living, changing climate and lingering effects of the coronavirus.
• • Impact Capturing and Reporting Your Thoughts, Feelings, Souvenirs and Memories
They can impact capture and record their thoughts, feelings, experiences, souvenirs and memories in relation to their life expectancy or the expectation of it. They can share with the community their experience of happy and healthy life expectancy. This can be recorded in their journal and be shared by the end of Summer 2023.
To share the contents of their happiness and healthiness journal relating to happy and healthy life expectancy, and help build a better Summer holiday experience, they can contact CENFACS.
Extra Messages
• Online TRACK to CENFACS Zero-Waste e-charity Summer Shop for Summer Goods Donations and Buys
• Virtual and In-person Trips for Field Research
• CENFACS’ be.Africa Forum e-discusses this Question: Is putschists’ threat to democracy a menace to poverty reduction in Africa?
• Online TRACK to CENFACS Zero-Waste e-charity Summer Shop for Summer Goods Donations and Buys
Every season is an opportunity to do something about the environment and poverty.
You can recycle or donate your unwanted or unused goods and presents to do something about the environment and or poverty.
You can also buy goods to meet the same ends.
This Summer you can online track CENFACS e-charity shop to help the environment and poverty relief.
If you are a fun of online tracking and shopping, you can take an online course of action or online path or even course of travel to save the environment and reduce poverty with CENFACS.
Instead of you in-person going to physically shop or donate your goods, you can from the comfort of your home buy or donate goods to CENFACS e-charity shop to help the deserving and noble cause of poverty relief and sustainable development.
To support us either by shopping or supplying us with products or goods you no longer want or use so that we can sell and raise the money for the good cause of poverty relief, please go http://cenfacs.org.uk/shop/
• Virtual and In-person Trips for Field Research
Trips to the local need this week include as well those travels made or to be made to conduct fieldwork research in Africa and anywhere else in the context of poverty relief and sustainable development projects.
Because of the lingering effects of the coronavirus, we recommend to those who want do trips for field research to take extra care in terms of health and safety. Where these effects are nullified or minor people can in-person visit local projects and those running them. These trips can also be done virtually.
When in-person visiting projects and people, it is in the interest of everybody that they should take care of the following:
√ They have to be fully vaccinated and or negatively tested against the coronavirus
√ They should wear appropriate personal protective equipment to protect themselves and others against the coronavirus if the latter is still a major threat to health
√ They should follow local, national and international rules related to the protection against the coronavirus or any threatening disease symptoms.
These fieldwork researches or practical experiences to gain knowledge and skills could be of varying forms such as observation and collection of raw data, interviews, focus group discussions, practical activities to support overseas development projects, etc.
If you are a researcher and did or are doing some fieldwork research on sustainable development and poverty reduction, and think that your work can enhance CENFACS’ work, you could share with us your experience, research findings or outcomes.
To share the experiences and results of your fieldwork research, just contact CENFACS and CENFACS will get back to you.
• CENFACS’ be.Africa Forum e-discusses Democracy, Putschism and Poverty Reduction in Africa
Is putschists’ threat to democracy a menace to poverty reduction in Africa?
Following the political events in Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea and recently Niger where putschists or neo-sovereigntists have taken by force the control of their countries’ affairs, the debate about the relationships between political democratisation processes and development has resurfaced within CENFACS. Likewise, there has been a revival of thoughts about State in Africa and its role in poverty reduction. In other words, there some thinking on what a post-cold war State did not offer in Africa that a neo-sovereigntist State in Africa would bring in terms of poverty reduction and sustainable development.
The above-mentioned debate and thoughts are part a conversation on the democratic conditions compared to the undemocratic ones in order to conduct poverty reduction and sustainable development policies in Africa. The talk is about whether a putschist/neo-sovereigntist governance will help to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development or on the contrary a democratic governance is better placed to offer more openings and better opportunities to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development in Africa.
During this very challenging time of polycrises (i.e., food crisis, energy crisis, climate crisis, geo-economic crisis, pension crisis, cost-of-living crisis, security crisis, debt crisis, etc.) in Africa, it is imperative to ask if Africa, in particular West Africa, requires another crisis to lie on its road to poverty reduction and sustainable development. Whatever the arguments put forward by both sides (the putschists and democrats), the truth of the matter is that in order for the businesses of poverty reduction and sustainable development to continue and flourish in Africa, there has to be some prerequisites to be met.
Are these influential or favourable conditions to poverty reduction and sustainable development better met by undemocratic or democratic governance? In other words, is putschists’ threat to democracy a menace to poverty reduction and sustainable development in Africa?
Those who may be interested in this first discussion of August 2023 can join in and or contribute by contacting CENFACS’ be.Africa, which is a forum for discussion on matters of poverty reduction and sustainable development in Africa and which acts on behalf of its members in making proposals or ideas for actions for a better Africa.
To communicate with CENFACS regarding this discussion, please use our usual contact details on this website.
Message in French (Message en français)
• Initiatives d’amélioration du bonheur et de la santé
Il existe des initiatives qui aident à rester heureux(se) et en bonne santé pendant l’été ou à tout moment. De quoi s’agit-il?
• • Types d’initiatives d’amélioration du bonheur et de la santé
Il s’agit d’activités stimulantes pour le bonheur et la santé pour des groupes, des familles, des enfants et des individus ou des personnes ayant des capacités et des besoins différents.
Ils comprennent des jeux, des applications, d’activités spirituelles et physiques.
• • Exemples d’initiatives d’amélioration du bonheur et de la santé
Les exemples de ces initiatives incluent les suivants à Londres:
faire du vélo sur les sites touristiques, voyager pour profiter d’une vue panoramique sur la ville, faire une croisière fluviale, entreprendre la détente sur la rivière, lire les livrets d’activités gratuites avec/pour les enfants, visiter des services fluviaux avec pistes cyclables, entreprendre des expériences exaltantes en hors-bord, faire une visite de la ville avec un commentaire guidé en direct, etc.
Ces activités pourraient ne pas provenir du CENFACS. Cependant, le CENFACS peut vous orienter à les accéder.
• • Recherche d’activités pour rester heureux/se et en bonne santé
Pour ceux/celles qui recherchent des activités pour rester heureux/ses et en bonne santé mais ne savent pas par où commencer, ils/elles peuvent contacter le CENFACS afin que nous puissions discuter ensemble de leurs besoins et trouver toute activité appropriée pour eux/elles.
Pour nous aider à les aider, ils/elles doivent avoir des idées ou des suggestions sur les choses ou les activités qu’ils/elles aimeraient entreprendre.
Si vous avez besoin d’aide et de soutien pour trouver des activités d’amélioration du bonheur et de la santé, n’hésitez pas à contacter le CENFACS.
Main Development
• FACS Issue No. 80, Summer 2023: Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty
The contents and key summaries of the 80th Issue of FACS are given below.
• • Contents and Pages
I. Key Concepts Relating to the 80th Issue of FACS (Page 2)
II. Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty (Page 3)
III. Africa-based Sister Organisations, Community Solidarity and Old Age Poverty Reduction (Page 3)
IV. Saving Money to Avoid Pension Poverty (Page 4)
V. Equating the Value of Pension and Poverty Threshold in Africa (Page 4)
VI. Sortir les personnes âgées de la pauvreté: Le cas de ‘HelpAge International’ avec son programme de promotion et d’intégration des personnes du troisième âge dans le processus de développement au Bénin (Page 5)
VII. La retraite comme sécurité durable en Afrique (Page 5)
VIII. Soutien des organisations sœurs basées en Afrique aux personnes du troisième âge pour échapper aux polycrises et protéger l’histoire en Afrique (Page 6)
IX. Repenser la catégorie des mesures concernant les indicateurs de pauvreté pour l’aide aux personnes âgées (Page 6)
X. Survey, Testing Hypotheses, E-questionnaire and E-discussion on Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty (Page 7)
XI. Support, Tool and Metrics, Information and Guidance on Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty (Page 8)
XII. Workshop, Focus Group and Booster Activity about Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty (Page 9)
XIII. Giving and Project (Page 10)
• • Key Summaries
Please find below the key summaries of the 80th Issue of FACS from page 2 to page 10.
• • • Key Concepts Relating to the 80th Issue of FACS (Page 2)
There are three concepts relating to pension that will help the readers of FACS to better understand the contents of the 80th Issue. These concepts are pension, pension programme and old-age poverty. Let us briefly explain these concepts.
• • • • Pension
Approaching pension from the micro-economic point of view, Christopher Pass et al. (5) define pension as
“A payment received by individuals who have retired from paid employment or have reached the government’s pensionable age, in the form of a regular weekly or monthly income, or as a lump sum”. (p. 445)
They also explain three types of pension scheme, which are state retirement pensions, occupational pensions and personal pension plans. In real world, there are many pension schemes such as flat-rate, earnings-related, means-tested, flat-rate universal, provident pensions, etc.
Pension payments need to be index-linked. Index-linked pension payments are pension payments that are connected to a price index so that if the retail price index (or inflation) increases, pension payments will be automatically adjusted by the same proportion of price increase.
However, because we are dealing with Africa, one needs to be careful when talking about pension in Africa. For instance, Fiona Stewart and Juan Yermo (6) explain that
“Most Sub-Saharan African countries do not have meaningful publicly managed pension and social security systems, though some form of pension coverage is available in a limited number of countries” (p. 10)
Stewart and Yermo also point out that there are public service pension schemes offered to formal sector workers, national schemes covering private sector workers and occupational schemes.
Because of lack in meaningful publicly managed pension in Africa, the Issue 80 considers payments made to the elderly under pension programmes beyond the accounting relating to contributions and benefits.
• • • • Pension programmes
The pension programmes studied here are non-contributory ones. Non-contributory pension programmes are defined in the research paper of Armando Barrientos (7) as
“Cash transfer programmes targeted primarily on older people. They are non-contributory in so far as, in practice, payroll contributions to social insurance schemes do not constitute a pre-requisite for entitlements. These include assistantial pension programmes” (p. 3)
Armando Barrientos notes that
“Non-contributory pension programmes reduce poverty among the elderly and their households, enable investment in human and physical capital within beneficiary households, strengthen intergenerational solidarity and transfers, insure poorer rural communities against the adverse effects of agricultural reform, and encourage local economy activity” (p. 3)
Instead of and besides non-contributory pension programmes, there are countries that provide social pensions. What are social pensions?
According to Jean-Jacques Dethier (8),
“Social pensions or universal minimum pensions are entitlements financed entirely out of the government’s general revenue paid out to certain categories of individuals, e.g. the population older than 65. However, they are low and not enough to lift its beneficiaries above the poverty line”.
Dethier also acknowledges that social insurance programmes do not require citizens during their working years to pay into them.
Taking an opposing view, Help Age (9) counter-argues that
“Cash transfers such as social pensions are not only affordable but also reduce the number of older people living in poverty as well as enabling them to access other services, such as health care and education” (p. 2 & 3)
An example of these transfers are social cash transfers such as social (non-contributory) pensions.
Briefly, pension whether contributory or non-contributory or social can be a way to transfer money to the elderly to purchase goods and services. For some pension advocates, social or non-contributory pensions can reduce the number of older people and their families living in poverty and enable access to services.
• • • • Old age poverty
The definition of old age income poverty used in this Issue comes from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The OECD (10) gives the relative concept of old age poverty by arguing that
“Old age income poor are individuals aged over 65 having an income below half the national median equivalised household disposable income”.
The same OECD considers that
“The yardstick for poverty depends on the medium household income in the total population in a particular country at a particular point in time”.
Who are the old age poor?
• • • • • Types of old age poor
Before providing the types of old age poor, let us precise their age.
In the Issue 80, the age cut-off limit of 63 years and above is used to define the elderly. This limit is at 63 years and above because life expectancy in Africa is not the same as in the developed world.
There are rich and poor amongst the 63 years and above. The ones we are interested in are the poor ones who may have problem to fund their old age life. These elderly poor are therefore people over 63 living on less than $3.65 a-day pension equivalent to the international poverty line of $3.65 (at 2017 Purchasing Parity Power) per person per day.
Help Age explains that
“People who are chronically poor all their lives, and are unable to save for old age, become particularly vulnerable when they can no longer work, or if their family cannot support them”.
The 80th Issue deals with these people and others falling under the category of old age poor like the following:
√ The poor elderly living with children
√ The poor elderly-headed households
√ The elderly Africans who cannot rely on family support
√ The disproportionally disadvantaged heads of poorest households
√ The excluded from development programmes and discriminated against by service
√ Those who are forced to work in low paid or demeaning jobs
√ Those lacking the right identification
√ Those experiencing poverty, isolation, less protection, social exclusion, discrimination, violence, abuse, economic exclusion, denial to insurance and credit schemes especially in rural areas, etc. For example, older women experience discriminatory customary law in property, inheritance and marriage matters.
The list can continue. But, what we are interested in is finding ways of reducing old age poverty in Africa through pension or old age income support. To achieve this reduction, one may have to inspect the relationship between in pension and old age poverty.
• • • Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty (Page 3)
There are arguments for and against about the possibility of pension to reduce old age poverty. We have already mentioned argument against provided by Jean-Jacques Dethier and argument for given by Help Age regarding this matter. To these arguments, let us add the following empirical studies.
For example, Jean-Jacques Dethier (op. cit.) argue that
“Introducing social pensions would substantially reduce poverty among the elderly in countries like Colombia, Honduras or Nicaragua. On the contrary, in countries (such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay) where minimum pensions exist and poverty rates are low, poverty will not decline much”.
Another example is of Ousmane Faye (11) who conducted a study on the poverty measures in 1995 and 2000 for the different age groups in Senegal. Faye’s findings are that
“Being poor is apparently not related to the age of the individuals; thus growing old in Senegal does not imply more poverty…In contrary, when comparing poverty profiles across households, we observe that poverty is more pervasive amongst households comprising elderly”. (p. 10)
In short, the possibility of pension to reduce old age poverty depends on many factors as well as methodology used to treat data.
• • • Africa-based Sister Organisations, Community Solidarity and Old Age Poverty Reduction (Page 3)
To reduce poverty within the older generation, it requires community solidarity, especially in places where there is not statutory support for the elderly or where support is meagre. Africa-based Sister Organisations (ASOs) driven by mission for the older generation are part of those who are supporting old people to reduce old age poverty. They do it through community solidarity set up by themselves and or the communities that make up their beneficiaries.
This community solidarity assists in channelling their support to the old aged people through networks of social relationships or community solidarity. The community solidarity enables their members to share risks collectively while accepting distributional entitlements. Those members who do not have pension or have pension below the market value can resort to their networks and ASOs to have some payments to make up the difference in pension.
• • • Saving Money to Avoid Pension Poverty (Page 4)
Saving money for old age time needs to start as early as possible. It means setting aside a certain percentage of your annual pre-tax income to be used when you get old. You can save into a pension scheme or any other means. However, the people in need may experience some difficulties to save money into a pension. That is why they need support to do it.
Pension poverty can happen to these people when pension saving is restricted by low pay, career gaps, part-time jobs, the cost-of-living crisis and other life unexpected events to build a decent pension. That is why is important for them to keep track on their pension to know way of avoiding pension poverty.
• • • Equating the Value of Pension and Poverty Threshold in Africa (Page 4)
It helps to reduce old age poverty by ensuring that the minimum pension is equal or above the international poverty line. Let say if the international poverty line is $3.65 per person per day (at 2017 purchasing parity price) for lower middle-income countries, the minimum pension should also be $3.65 a day pension or more. Yet, it is challenging for many countries in Africa to achieve this sort of equation. Those places that fail to meet this threshold, their elderly would be poor.
For example, ‘borgenproject.org’ (12) explains that
“Poverty for the elderly occurs when their income is 40 per cent less than the median average”.
To reduce poverty in Africa and elsewhere, it may require to meet the above mentioned threshold and median average.
• • • Sortir les personnes âgées de la pauvreté: Le cas de ‘HelpAge International’ avec son programme de promotion et d’intégration des personnes du troisième âge dans le processus de développement au Bénin (Page 5)
HelpAge International, le réseau mondial pour la promotion de la personne âgée avait initialisé en Mars 2001 une formation des formateurs sur la nutrition et la sécurité alimentaire des personnes âgées pour l’Afrique francophone. Cette formation s’est déroulée au Sénégal et a rassemblé 6 pays de l’Afrique francophone dont le Bénin. Cette formation a débouché sur la mise au point de programmes d’actions par pays, destinés à intégrer les personnes âgées dans les programmes de développement human en Afrique francophone. Conformément au plan d’action du Bénin, la 1ère phase avait pour objectif de poser le diagnostic de la situation alimentaire, sanitaire et nutritionnelle des personnes âgées en vue de
~ Combler la lacune d’informations sur les personnes du troisième âge (PTA) en apportant des informations relatives aux problèmes rencontrés
~ Attirer l’attention de décideurs politiques sur l’extrême précarité de la situation des PTA
~ Identifier, concevoir et mettre en oeuvre de façon efficace des programmes d’intervention pertinents pour assurer un bien-être aux PTA au Bénin.
Le cas ci-dessus montre bel et bien qu’il y a des travaux qui sont entrepris par des organisations (y compris africaines) pour aider les PTA à sortir de la pauvreté at à améliorer la qualité de leur vie.
• • • La retraite comme sécurité durable en Afrique (Page 5)
Les facteurs de risque interconnectés (tels que les polycrises) de l’insécurité en Afrique peuvent être abordés pour construire un système de sécurité durable pour les personnes de troisième âge. Un tel système intégrerait les fonctions traditionnelles de la durabilité, à savoir la durabilité économique, sociale et environnementale.
A cela s’ajoutent les crises contemporaines telles que la confrontation géo-économique, l’érosion de la cohésion sociale et la polarisation sociale, la cyber-insécurité, les catastrophes naturelles et les températures extrêmes, le crise du coût de la vie, les guerres, etc.
La retraite ainsi conçue comme une sécurité à long terme protégerait mieux les personnes du troisième âge contre les risques de pauvreté et de vulnérabilité. Et les organisations sœurs basées en Afrique travaillant avec ces personnes qui iront dans cette direction seront plus à même de réduire la pauvreté des retraités et d’éviter les crises des retraites en Afrique; crises que certains hésitent à parler ou simplement ignorent. Cette vision de la retraite permettra également de diminuer sinon d’éliminer à long terme la pauvreté intergénérationnelle entre ces personnes et leurs petits enfants.
• • • Soutien des organisations sœurs basées en Afrique aux personnes du troisième âge pour échapper aux polycrises et protéger l’histoire en Afrique (Page 6)
Depuis plusieurs années, l’Afrique fait face à une succession de crises ou de polycrises (caractérisées par la crise du coronavirus, la crise alimentaire, la crise de la dette, l’insécurité avec des foyers de tension un peu partout en Afrique, la crise de la démocratie, les crises climatiques, etc.). Dans ce contexte de crises générales qui se chevauchent, il est difficile de voir une attention particulière être accordée aux personnes du troisième âge (PTA), des personnes qui sont normalement négligées dans la plupart des sociétés africaines et dont le nombre est si faible en terme de population si on compare avec la population jeune africaine.
Dans ce contexte généralisé de crises, les organisations sœurs basées en Afrique qui travaillent sur les problèmes liés aux PTA veillent à ce que les PTA ne soient pas laissés pour compte. Grâce à des projets et initiatives locaux visant à protéger ces PTA, ces organisations apportent de l’eau potable, de la nourriture, des médicaments, des soins de santé, des vêtements, etc. Elles le font non seulement pour soutenir la vie des PTA, mais aussi pour protéger ce qui reste de l’histoire africaine que ces PTA détiennent. Certains peuvent espérer que ces orgainsations auront la même attention par rapport à celles qui travaillent avec et pour les enfants et les jeunes.
• • • Repenser la catégorie des mesures concernant les indicateurs de pauvreté pour l’aide aux personnes âgées (Page 6)
Nous pouvons réfléchir aux mesures visant à développer des indicateurs susceptibles de quantifier la pauvreté et la précarité subies par les PTA. Une telle réflexion ou révision aidera mieux les PTA.
Par exemple, le taux d’écart de pauvreté (c’est-à-dire le déficit de revenu moyen inférieur au seuil de pauvreté en proportion du seuil de pauvreté, les non-pauvres ayant un déficit de revenu nul) peut être remanié pour tenir compte de facteurs propres à l’âge.
De même, dans un ménage où les chefs de ménage sont des personnes âgées, on peut repenser le revenu disponible équivalent (c’est-à-dire le revenu total d’un ménage disponible pour consommer ou épargner, après impôts et transferts, divisé par le nombre de personnes dans le ménage. Chaque individu est transformé en équivalent adulte). Cette réflexion conduira à considérer les conditions spécifiques liées à la troisième génération.
En outre, l’indexation des pensions à l’inflation protégera le pouvoir d’achat des PTA, car elle empêchera la valeur des pensions d’être érodée par l’inflation. Dans cette situation fortement inflationniste, l’absence d’indexation des pensions au niveau élevé de l’inflation ne peut que nuire aux PTA.
Au fond, il est possible de repenser la retraite en reconsidérant la catégorie des mesures concernant les indicateurs de pauvreté liés à l’ancienne génération. Cette refonte améliorera le soutien fourni aux PTA.
• • • Survey, Testing Hypotheses, E-questionnaire and E-discussion on Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty (Page 7)
• • • • Survey on retirement plans
The purpose of this survey is to collect information from a sample of our users and community members regarding their plan when they retire, on the way of funding their old age time.
Participation to this survey is voluntary.
As part of the survey, we are running a questionnaire which contains some questions. One of these questions is:
Q: How prepared are you in funding your costs of living when you will be over 65 or if your are already 65 how are you funding these costs?
You can respond and directly send your answer to CENFACS.
• • • • Testing Hypotheses about causal relationships between pension and the reduction of old age poverty
For those of our members who would like to dive deep into the impact of pension (of pension scheme) on the reduction of old age poverty, we have some educational activities for them. They can test the inference of the following hypotheses:
a.1) Null hypothesis (Ho): There is relationship between social pension and the reduction of old age poverty
a.2) Alternative hypothesis (H1): There is not a relationship between social pension and the reduction of old age poverty
b.1) Null hypothesis (Ho): There is relationship between occupational pension and the reduction of old age poverty
b.2) Alternative hypothesis (H1): There is not relationship between occupational pension and the reduction of old age poverty
c.1) Null hypothesis (Ho): There is relationship between personal pension plans and the reduction of old age poverty
c.2) Alternative hypothesis (H1): There is relationship between personal pension plans and the reduction of old age poverty.
In order to conduct these tests, one needs data on both pension and old age people.
• • • • E-question about experience dealing with pension information
Any of our readers can answer the following questions.
Q1: Do you check pension offer in any job application you make or job advert you may apply?
Q2: If you are already in employment, do you know your employer’s pension scheme?
Please tick (√) as appropriate.
YES [ ]
NO [ ]
If your answer is YES, please share your experience with CENFACS and others within the community.
If your answer is NO, CENFACS can work with you via its Advice-giving Service (service which we offer to the community for free) to find way forward to deal with pension information.
• • • • E-discussion on contributions and benefits
Many of our members have their own views about whether or not pension should be based only on the relationship between contributions made and benefits received if one wants to reduce poverty in the old age.
For those who may have any views or thoughts or even experience to share with regard to this matter, they can join our e-discussion to exchange their views or thoughts or experience with others.
To e-discuss with us and others, please contact CENFACS.
• • • Support, Tool and Metrics, Information and Guidance on Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty (Page 8)
• • • • Ask CENFACS for Support regarding pension and the reduction of old age poverty
For those members of our community who would like to improve the way they understand the effects of pension on the reduction of old age poverty, CENFACS can work with them to explore ways of understanding it.
We can work with them under our Advice-, Guidance- and Information-giving Service. We can as well signpost them to organisations working on pension for those in need.
If you are a member of our community, you can ask us for basic support regarding your lack of or less understanding of the effects of pension on the reduction of old age poverty.
• • • • Tool and Metrics of the 80th Issue of FACS
• • • • • Pension Calculator as a tool
One of the tools we find that could be useful for our community members is Pension Calculator.
A pension calculator (13) tells you how much money you need in retirement and the way of having it.
Those who would like to discuss the relevancy of this tool and its application, they can feel free to contact CENFACS.
• • • • • Pension Metrics
The Issue 80 uses two metrics, which are old age dependency ratio and poverty gap ratio.
a) Old age dependency ratio
The old age dependency ratio is a measure of the burden of supporting the elderly population on the working-age population. The ‘data.oecd.org’ (14) speaks about the old-age to working-age demographic ratio which it defines as
“The number of individuals aged 65 and over per 100 people of working age defined as those at ages 20 to 64”.
The old-age dependency ratio is calculated as:
([Population ages 65-plus] ÷ [Population ages 16-64]) x 100
b) Poverty gap ratio
This is an interesting metrics of poverty as it measures the intensity of poverty.
The online ‘marketbusinessnews.com’ (15) explains that
“The poverty gap ratio or poverty gap index is the average of the ratio of the poverty gap to the poverty line. Economists and statisticians express it as a percentage of the poverty line for a region or whole country…The poverty gap ratio considers how far, on the average, poor people are from poverty line”.
The above tool and metrics can be used in dealing with pension and the reduction of old age poverty in Africa. For example, one can use the poverty gap ratio to measure the average shortfall of old age income from the poverty line.
• • • • Information and Guidance on Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty
Information and Guidance include two types areas of support via CENFACS, which are:
a) Information and Guidance on pension and the reduction of old age poverty
b) Signposts to improve users’ experience about pension and the reduction of old age poverty.
• • • • • Information and Guidance on pension and the reduction of old age poverty
Training and education opportunities about pension and its effects on poverty are not widely spread as they are in other financial fields. Yet, having a basic training and education on pension matter can help people to be better prepared when they become old. Basic pension training and education can provide valuable skills to deal with old age poverty issues.
Those members of community who are looking for pension training and education and who do not know what to do, CENFACS can work with them (via needs assessment) or provide them with leads about organisations and services that can help them.
• • • • • Signposts to improve users’ experience about pension and the reduction of old age poverty
For those who are looking for whereabout to find help about pension queries and old age hardships, we can direct them to the relevant services and organisations.
More tips and hints relating to the matter can be obtained from CENFACS‘ Advice-giving Service.
Additionally, you can request from CENFACS a list of organisations and services providing help and support in the area of pension and the reduction of old age poverty, although the Issue 80 does not list them. Before making any request, one needs to specify the kind of organisations they are looking for.
To make your request, just contact CENFACS with your name and contact details.
• • • Workshop, Focus Group and Booster Activity about Pension and the Reduction of Old Age Poverty (Page 9)
• • • • Mini Themed Workshop on Pension Skills to Reduce Old Age Poverty
Boost your knowledge and skills about the reduction of old age poverty via CENFACS. The workshop aims at supporting those without or with less information and knowledge about old age poverty gain pension skills, make responsible retirement decisions and choices, and improve their ability to deal with old-age poverty issues.
To enquire about the boost, please contact CENFACS.
• • • • Focus Group on Economic Security in Old Age
You can take part in our focus group on ways of encouraging needy people to learn and know the issues surrounding economic security in old age.
To take part in the focus group, please contact CENFACS.
• • • • Summer Pension Confidence Building Activity
This user involvement activity revolves around the answers to the following questions:
Q1: How confident are you with your pension scheme?
Q2: How do many of you feel confident in their preparedness to avoid old age poverty?
Q3: How do many of you turn to pension professionals for pension guidance or advice?
Q4: How do many of you understand the basic pension principles or maths?
Those who would like to answer these questions and participate to our Summer Pension Confidence Building Activity, they are welcome.
To take part in this activity, please contact CENFACS.
• • • Giving and Project (Page 10)
• • • • Readers’ Giving
You can support FACS, CENFACS bilingual newsletter, which explains what is happening within and around CENFACS.
FACS also provides a wealth of information, tips, tricks and hacks on how to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.
You can help to continue its publication and to reward efforts made in producing it.
To support, just contact CENFACS on this site.
• • • • Pension Project of Poverty Reduction (PPPR)
PPPR is poverty-relieving initiative designed to work with unaware beneficiaries about their pension rights and obligations so that they can sort out their pension plans and rights as early as possible in order to avoid or reduce poverty in their old age.
Through this project, it is hoped that beneficiaries will take early steps both in terms of contributions and benefits so that they can avoid disappointment or surprise in old age that can lead to pension poverty. PPPR will also motivate them to improve their means of living and contributions towards their retirement while making responsible decisions in terms of pension scheme choices.
To support or contribute to PPPR, please contact CENFACS.
For further details including the implementation plan of the PPPR , please contact CENFACS.
The full copy of the 80th Issue of FACS is available on request.
For any queries and comments about this Issue, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.
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• References
(1) Barr, N. and Diamond, P. (2006), The economics of pension, Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Vol. 22, No. 1
(2) https://ocean-climate.org/en/marine-and-coastal-ecosystem-services/ (accessed in August 2023)
(3) https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/0.3384/fmars.2020.00453/full#(accessed in August 2023)
(4) Brown, K., Daw, T., Rosendo, S., Bunce, M. & Cherrett, N., (2008), Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation: Marine and Coastal Situational Analysis; Synthesis Report at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/57a08bb640f0b652dd000e36/MarineandCoastal_Synthesis-Report.pdf (accessed in August 2023)
(5) Pass, C., Lowes, B., Pendleton, A. & Chadwick, L. (1991), Collins Dictionary of Business, HarperCollinsPublishers, Glasgow
(6) Stewart, F. and Yermo, J. (2009), Pensions in Africa, OECD Working Papers on Insurance and Private Pensions, No. 30, OECD publishing @OECDdoi:10.1787/227444006716 (accessed in August 2023)
(7) Barrientos, A. (2003), What is the impact of non-contributory pension on poverty? Estimates from Bazil and South Africa at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/57a08d12e5274a31e0001612/33Barrientos.pdf (accessed in August 2023)
(8) Dethier, J.-J. (2010), Eliminating poverty in old age: are social pensions the answer? at https://blogs.worldbank.org/development/talk/eliminating-poverty-in-old-age-are-social-pensions-the-answer# (accessed in August 2023)
(9) https://www.helpage.org/silo/files/older-people-in-africa-a-forgotten-generation.pdf (accessed in August 2023)
(10) https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/d76e4-fad-en/index.html?itemld=/content/component/d76e4fad-en (accessed in June 2023)
(11) Faye, O. (2007), Basic Pension and Poverty Reduction in Sub-Saharan Africa, CREPP, HEC Management School – University of Liège, Department of Economics, CREPP Working Papers
(12) https://borgenproject.org/3-reasons-for elderly-poverty-in-the-united-kingdom/ (accessed in August 2023)
(13) https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/pensions-and-retirement/pensions-basics/pension-calculator (accessed in August 2023)
(14) https://data.oecd.org/pop/old-age-dependency-ratio.htm (accessed in August 2023)
(15) https://marketbusinessnews.com/information-on-credit/gap-ratio–definition-meaning (accessed in August 2023)
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• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going this Year
We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis. Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.
One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.
Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS. Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.
Donate to support CENFACS!
FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.
JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)
Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.
Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.
We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2023 and beyond.
With many thanks.
