SA’s ageing population challenge: How to support senior citizens before 2050

By Lebone Rodah Mosima

While South Africa remains a youthful country – about 63% of its population is under 35 – its relatively small elderly population is projected to grow steadily in the coming decades, and provision must be made for the challenges associated with ageing, now.

This is according to KwaZulu-Natal Legislature Deputy Speaker Mmabatho Tembe, who was speaking in Umdoni Municipality on Thursday at a handover ceremony where gardening implements, seeds and seedlings were donated to the Imizamo Yabadala Senior Citizens Club – an organisation of more than 50 senior citizens.

The event was held on the sidelines of a Senior Citizens Parliament convened at Umzinto Town Hall.

Tembe said forecasts were clear that the number of people aged 60 and over would double by 2050, and the proportion of the population aged above 60 would rise from about 9.8% in 2022 to 15.4% by 2050.

“These trends