Kenya is working on Older Persons Bill 2025 to ensure the rights of senior citizens are protected against abuse and discrimination in society.

Social Protection and Senior Citizen Affairs Principal Secretary Joseph Motari said that the bill will put in place policies that will promote inclusion and overall well-being of the older persons in society, whom he said form an important aspect of national heritage.

Motari said this in a speech read on his behalf by Secretary Administration for Social Protection Esther Maina during an event to mark the United Nations International Day for Older Persons at Musese in Bungoma Central Sub-County, Bungoma County.

At the same time, the principal secretary noted that they were working with partners to mainstream aging in the national agenda for development, so as to put in place systems that will ensure that older persons are not merely recipients of care, but also active participants in decision making on government policy issues.

Motari said that it was the duty of government to ensure that the older persons stay in dignity, get security and enjoy their rights, adding that it was against this backdrop that the government increased the number of beneficiaries for the Inua Jamii cash transfer fund from 700,000 in 2022 to 1.1m in August this year.

He called on the society to listen to the voice of old persons, their aspirations and dreams for purposes of cultural continuity.

Speaking at the same function, Bungoma governor Kenneth Lusaka said 37,123 local senior citizens were befitting from Ksh890 million annually, courtesy of the government’s the Inua Jamii cash transfer programme.

He thanked the national government for this program saying it had greatly improved the livelihoods of the beneficiary older persons in the area.

Lusaka said an additional 3000 older persons were also befitting from the Social Health Authority (SHA) and that the county government was making efforts to complement this initiative by expanding health care services.

He called on the area residents to take care of the older persons with passion, protect them from abuse and utilise their wisdom for the moral growth of the society. The area County Commissioner Thomas Sankei commended the older persons for their participation and guidance in various government committees.

• A Tell Media / KNA report / By Catherine Nyongesa