Suqoon Founder Shakira Khawaja speaking during the Fourth Kenya Social Protection Conference in Nairobi
By Staff Reporter
NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenya’s progress in extending life expectancy must now be matched by stronger social protection systems that enable older people to live healthy, independent and dignified lives, Suqoon Founder Shakira Khawaja has said.
Khawaja made the remarks during the Fourth Kenya Social Protection Conference in Nairobi, where she called for a shift towards a more preventive and person-centred approach to ageing. She said social protection should not wait until older people face serious vulnerability but should help them maintain their health, independence and ability to contribute to society.
“We worked hard for people to live longer. Now let us make sure our systems are ready for those longer lives, and that those lives are lived with function, contribution and dignity,” she said.
Her remarks came as Kenya continues to strengthen its social protection framework amid a growing older population. During the conference, President William Ruto, in a speech read on his behalf by Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua, committed to establishing and capitalising a Social Protection Fund, making benefit indexation predictable and expanding coverage to 2.5 million households.
The President also directed that a national school meals programme be introduced in all 47 counties in the first term of 2027.
The growing number of older Kenyans is adding urgency to the conversation. Specialists briefing the media ahead of Kenya’s inaugural International Day of Older Persons national celebration said the population aged 60 and above is projected to increase from about 2.9 million currently to 6.4 million by 2045.
Khawaja said the projected increase means Kenya must prepare its social protection and health systems to respond to the realities of longer lives. She argued that health and social protection are closely connected, particularly because a health problem can quickly affect an older person’s independence and place additional pressure on families.
She gave the example of a fall at home, which can result in a fracture, hospitalisation, loss of mobility and dependence on others. In some cases, she said, a son or daughter may have to stop working to provide care, turning what begins as a health incident into a wider social and economic challenge for the family.
Suqoon, working with partners including Safaricom and the Chandaria Foundation, modifies older people’s homes to help prevent such falls. Khawaja said seemingly simple interventions can therefore have a wider impact on both older people and their families.
“That grab rail is not just a renovation. It is health protection. It is caregiver protection. It is social protection,” she said.
As the conference moves towards its Call to Action, which is expected to be signed on October 1, Khawaja urged delegates to commit to addressing gaps in protection for older people.
One of the issues she raised is the gap between the age of 60, when the Constitution recognises a Kenyan as an older person, and 70, when the Older Persons Cash Transfer begins. She called for a clear pathway to address this gap so that older people are not left without adequate support during the intervening years.
She also called for stronger protection of older people’s income, property and assets from abuse. In this regard, she urged action on the Older Persons Bill, 2024, which she said had not yet been tabled in Parliament since the conclusion of public participation in 2024.
Khawaja further called for an assisted route for older people who are unable to use digital payment systems and services on their own, saying access to social protection should not depend entirely on a person’s ability to navigate digital platforms.
Beyond policy and financial support, she urged Kenyans to change the way they view older people and recognise their contribution to families and communities.
She said older people continue to raise grandchildren, farm, run businesses, participate in chamas and provide support that helps hold families together. Their contribution, she added, should be recognised as part of the country’s social and economic life.
“An elder is not where the life cycle closes. She is where it turns. When we invest in an older person, the return does not stop with her. It moves through the family, the community and into the next generation,” she said.
The importance of social connection was also highlighted by older people participating in Suqoon’s community activities in Mathare and Embakasi.
Ann Wanjiru Mbuthia, 64, the Organising Secretary at Mathare Older Persons Network, said stronger interaction between generations was necessary to improve understanding of the experiences and needs of older people.
“We need more conversations between generations. Young people need to understand what older people go through and why they need to be cared for. There is a lot that younger people can learn from older people,” she said.
Peter Oyugi, 65, from Embakasi, said community spaces provided older people with an opportunity to remain connected rather than spending long periods isolated at home.
“Suqoon has given us a space where we can come together, talk and interact. Sometimes an older person can stay in the house for many days without going anywhere. Having this space gives us a reason to come out and feel part of the community,” he said.
The Fourth Kenya Social Protection Conference, held from September 29 to October 1, focused on “Re-imagining Social Protection in an evolving socio-economic landscape and climate change: Strengthening Adaptive, Transformative and Sustainable Social Protection Systems for Inclusive Development in Kenya.”
The discussions placed renewed attention on how Kenya can strengthen social protection systems as demographic, economic and climate realities change.
For Khawaja, the growing number of older people presents an opportunity for Kenya to rethink how it plans for ageing, moving beyond responding to vulnerability after it occurs to creating systems that support health, independence, participation and dignity throughout later life.
