96 Book Reviews
Reviewed by Dr R G ABoland, c/oDr Catherine ([Arcangues, Special Programme
onResearch,Development andResearchTraining inHumanReproduction, World
Health Organisation, 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland.
The Situation of the Elderly in Botswana: Proceedings From an International
Workshop, Frank Jade Bruun, Mbulawa Mugabe & Yolande Coombes (eds) ,
Gaborone: National Institute of Development Research and Documentation,
University of Botswana. Oslo: Centre for Development and the Environment,
University of Oslo, 1994, ix + 136pp. ISSN 0805-3251.
The papers in this volume are based on contributions to an international workshop
on 'The Situation of the Elderly' which was held in Gaborone, Botswana, from
March 29 to Aprill, 1993.
Ageing is a process that has begun to attract increasing scholarly attention. What
is popularly termed the "greying of the population" constitutes a major problem for
many societies. Changes in the number and proportion of older people in the total
population have implications for, inter alia, the social structure, family health care,
housing and poverty. The multi-disciplinary team which participated in the
workshop was composed of individuals who were technically well-positioned to
tackle aspects of this neglected subject.
The volume is divided into four parts. The papers included in Part I -
"Information Needs and Policy at the National Level" - introduce readers to the
subject of ageing and also explore the policy dimension. Alex Kalachi' s paper
serves as a backcloth in which he discusses the process of ageing in a regional and
global framework. This contribution should help the reader to contextualise the
more specific papers covered in the rest of the volume.
Mbulawa Mugabe's paper focuses on the health and social policies related to
elderly people in Botswana. He argues that the structure and organisation of
existing health and social services are inadequate to deal with the multiplicity of
problems associated with ageing. Coombes, Khulumani and Ngome's paper
presents a profile of the elderly in Botswana They examine the aged from a
demographic dimension and highlight related factors. For instance, they show that
the number of elderly people who are economically active had dropped from 8,5
percent in 1971 to 7,5 percent in 1991. Their findings also reveal that elderly people
tend to be resident in rural areas, and have low levels of literacy and formal
education. They point out that the extended family network remains an important
dimension in the lives of the aged.
Part 2 of this volume focuses on the cultural and traditional factors affecting the
elderly at the village level. Ingstad' s paper deals with various aspects of the lives
of elderly people in Mankgodi, a small village in the Kweneng District. She draws
Book Reviews 97
attention to the changing status of the aged in the wake of"modernisation". TIou' s
paper examines the reciprocal perception of the elderly and young people regarding
the process of ageing. She concludes that the elderly in Botswana are still
viewed as an important resource in child care, socialisation and other cultural
activities. Bruun's ethnographic investigation of the elderly in rural Botswana is
undertaken against the prism of the funeral ritual. This case study is the product of
participant observation "...during the preparation of the burial of an old woman" .
The author provides fascinating insights on how old Batswana use the funeral as
a device to influence changes in society.
Part 3 - "Health, Illness Care at the Village Level" - consists of a selection of
papers which aim to illustrate the relationship between old age and health. Ingstad
and Bruun concluded that it has become increasingly difficult for absent family
members to maintain a good standard of living for the elderly people who remain
in the village. Clausen and Sandberg's contribution seeks to evaluate the health
status of elderly people in Mankgodi. This impressionistic account, based on
fmdings from medical examinations and a questionnaire, revealed that the health
condition of the elderly was "relatively good" .
Part 4 - "Needs and Suggestions for Solutions" - considers selected aspects of
ageing. In addition, the papers in this section address policy issues. Guillette's
paper focuses on how the processes of modemisation and social change have
altered the meaning of old age from "elderhood" to "elder dependency". Ngome' s
paper is concerned with old people's subjective experiences regarding ageing. He
concludes that: "The elderly do not want to be seen as a burden to society .butas
apotential resource" . Raditladi's account chronicles his fascinating experience as
part of the greying population. His down-to-earth presentation includes useful
policy recommendations.
The concluding chapter by the editors provided an overview of the main themes
of the papers included in the volume. In this respect they deal with the changes in
the health, social and economic status of elderly people. They also make important
policy recommendations to ensure that the care and support for the elderly remain
critical policy issues.
All in all, this volume represents a welcome effort to create a more infonned
view of problems associated with ageing. It is a valuable addition to the paucity of
research on the elderly in Botswana More significantly, it sets the stage for the state
and other interested parties to address the urgent need for public initiatives to
enhance the welfare of the aged.
Reviewed by Louis Molamu, Department of Sociology, University of Botswana,
P Bag 0022, Gaborone, Botswana.