dialogue about child marriages, in order to change attitudes and social norms and raise
their awareness about the dangers of child marriages. It also focuses on accessibility of
safe, comprehensive, age-appropriate sexual and reproductive health information and
services to all young girls in Malawi. This includes those who are already married at a
young age, by providing adequate and accessible healthcare, psychosocial support and, if
necessary, a way out of the marriage.
National Policy for Older Persons 2016
91.
The National Policy for Older Persons has been developed to provide a coherent and
comprehensive overall framework for facilitating and promoting the social, economic and
cultural integration of older persons.
This is achieved by harnessing their proven
productive capacities so that the nation continues to benefit from their contribution.
92.
The development of the Policy follows reviews and surveys on the situation of older
persons in Malawi which revealed that:
older persons have difficulties in accessing services and support such as healthcare,
loans, nutritious food, public and private buildings, transport, information and
communication systems;
older persons have been excluded and marginalized, and prevented from participating
fully in development activities on the basis of their age;
The advent of HIV and AIDS has compounded the situation of older persons by
leaving orphans and denying them the support from their deceased children;
older persons are often abused physically and verbally due to a number of reasons
including suspected witchcraft and other superstitious beliefs;
older persons are also disadvantaged in terms of land and property ownership;
business ventures; and employment avenues resulting in the majority of them living
in abject poverty with no access to resources and income;
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