International Federation on Ageing (IFA) – 8th Global Conference, 2006 - a dedicated stream of symposia on “Old Age and Ageing in Africa: Understanding Implications, Shaping Opportunities” These themes were addressed in four sessions:

▪ S04: ‘Research on Ageing for Policy Development, Implementation, Review and
Appraisal in Africa’

▪ S19: ‘Surviving into Old Age in Africa: Dilemmas and Challenges for Health Care’

▪ S28: ‘Older People and HIV/AIDS in Africa – Affected and/or Infected’

▪ S57: ‘Life Course and Poverty in Old Age in Africa’

(Funds were raised to fully fund 20 sub-Saharan African delegates – main sponsor Help the Aged)

St Gallen, Switzerland, Sept 2007, World Demographic Association (WDA), 3rd
World Ageing & Generations Congress. Special AFRAN session ‘Linking Ageing and development agendas in sub-Saharan Africa: Challenges and Approaches’

(Funds were raised to fully fund 10 sub-Saharan African delegates – main sponsor Swiss Development Agency)

First AFRAN East African Policy-Research Dialogue (Nairobi, Kenya), 17 & 18
September 2007.

(Funds were raised to fully fund 30 delegates from Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya,
Tanzania, Uganda – main sponsor Help the Aged)

The two key aims of the meeting were:

To systematically identify key evidence gaps on ageing and older people that need to be addressed as a priority in order to (i) clarify the need for, or (ii) inform the design of policies on ageing or older persons - in the context of current national (or sub-regional) development plans or frameworks (such as Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers) in the specific areas of health, poverty reduction, and/or HIV/AIDS.

To initiate the formation of appropriate national or sub-regional working groups to develop national or cross-national research projects to address these evidence gaps.

Link to report

Second AFRAN Research-Policy Dialogue. (Abuja,Nigeria, 8-10 July 2008).
Advancing Health Service Provision for Age-related Non-communicable Disease and
Older Persons in Africa: Identifying Key Information and Training Needs

(Funds were raised to fully fund 35 delegates from Nigeria, Kenya, Senegal, South
Africa – main sponsor Help the Aged & International Association of Gerontology and
Geriatrics)

The key purpose of the dialogue was to stimulate exchange and consultation between practice, policy and research and between the four participant countries in order to:

Identify the principal impediments to effective policy action on older persons’ health/age-related non-communicable disease, and key associated information and training gaps, across countries

Develop relevant Africa-owned, cross-national collaborative research and training responses to address the gaps

Link to report

St Gallen, Switzerland, 27-30 Aug 2008, World Demographic Association (WDA), 3rd
World Ageing & Generations Congress, AFRAN Special Session, ‘Intergenerational
Solidarity and Old Age Support in Africa and Asia: What Roles for Family and State?’

(Funds were raised to fully fund 15 delegates from sub-Saharan Africa – main sponsor
Swiss Development Agency)

AFRAN/United Nations Training Course: “Social Gerontology in South Africa”

An AFRAN training course on Social Gerontology in South Africa (8 – 13 December 2008) for 58 social work practitioners and health care professionals was conducted in Johannesburg, South Africa. North-West University, South Africa and the United Nations International Institute on Ageing (INIA), Malta, with a consortium of South African Universities (University of Cape Town, Rhodes University and University of Witwatersrand) in collaboration with the National Departments of Social Development and Health were all involved in this partnership.

(This initiative was sponsored by the National Departments of Health and Social Development in South Africa)

St Gallen, Switzerland, Sept 2009, World Demographic Association (WDA), 5th
World Ageing & Generations Congress. Special AFRAN session “Ageing-related
health challenges in the poor developing world: Responses from sub-Saharan Africa (SSA)”

(Funds were raised to fully fund 7 delegates from respectively South Africa, Senegal and Nigeria – main sponsor Swiss Development Agency)

ASAUK / AFRAN / King’s College One-Day Workshop: ‘Gendered and Generational Strategies for Negotiating Ageing in Africa’, King’s College, London – September 14, 2009.

(This workshop was sponsored by the African Studies Association in the United Kingdom)