New faces of Development: growing older

The classic - and much bemoaned and critiqued - mental image of the developing world is of a woman carrying a baby and a pot of water or wood on her head. In different variations, it has served as a rallying cry to give donations to large and small organisations, and, for others, is a testimony to the physical, mental and spiritual strength of women the world over. Regardless of your opinion of this image (it certainly doesn't capture most African women I've met) something is shifting on the ground, though it has yet to catch up to the images of development - or indeed what it means to pursue sustainable development. The global population is both a) getting younger and b) getting older.

In Africa, it is common that in many countries, at least 40% of the population is below age 15. In Uganda, its over 50%. This is a result of wars, migration and epidemics - not least AIDS, which has wiped out significant portions of the adult population. This has been a well documented trend in recent years, and has gained a fair amount of attention - often, it lies at the heart of analysis on some of the rise of youth violence and social exclusion and political unrest - not only lots of young people, but a lack of clear role models and close family relationships to ease them into adulthood.

But there is another trend, much noted in the US and UK, but which is increasingly effecting the developing and emerging markets- an increase in old people. What is of importance to any understanding of poverty and vulnerability and thus to any real attempt to tackle sustainable development is not the raw numbers of the aging population but that they are often located in rural areas, are poor, and have few social protections.

China is a splendid example. Its economic growth and modernisation has led to young people leaving the rural communities and migrating to the cities - leaving behind parents and relatives who invariably grow older (and the average life span is increasing). They are not necessarily growing wealthier- though many receive both pensions and support from family in the urban areas. According to a report in the journal Mental Health in 2009, many of China's 20 million pensioners are lonely. The numbers have doubled from 1992 to 2000. The collectivised system that was the heart of Mao's rural Communist China meant a high level of social integration and livelihood engagement for all. Life was less competitive, slower, and there were long discussions at collective meetings, most of which no longer happen. People were engaged with their community and, to some extent, their destiny. Now, many are wealthier - and more isolated. Its a familiar plight for many in the West - but as we worry about the economic challenges of supporting pensioners, let us not forget that sustainable development includes the social - the human - aspect as well.