As Kenya’s population ages, the conversation around growing old can no longer be confined to retirement, pensions, or the responsibility of families to care for their elderly. It is increasingly becoming a conversation about dignity, rights, protection, and the relationship between generations.
The 14th Monthly Discussion Forum on Ageing (MDFA), held in August, brought together older persons, young people, policymakers, and other stakeholders to examine how Kenya can bridge the generational divide while strengthening the systems that protect older people.
CPF (County Pensions Fund) Foundation is an organisation committed to promoting the social and economic well-being of older persons in Kenya. Their work in strengthening financial security, social protection, and awareness around ageing strongly aligns with MDFA’s mission of advancing meaningful conversations and solutions for dignified ageing. Through impactful programmes and partnerships, CPF Foundation continues to champion support systems that empower older persons to live secure and resilient lives within communities.
The monthly dialogue was convened and organised by Suqoon and the Ageing Concern Foundation (ACF) and hosted by CPF. Held under the theme “Bridging Generations, Strengthening the Rights, Dignity and Protection of Older Persons in Kenya,” the forum placed intergenerational relationships at the centre of discussions on ageing, older persons’ rights, abuse, social protection, pensions and long-term care.
Rather than presenting ageing as an issue belonging only to older people, the 14th edition opened up a broader conversation about the responsibilities shared by different generations and the need for society to prepare for ageing long before old age arrives.
At the heart of that conversation was intergenerational solidarity, the recognition that younger and older people have different strengths, experiences and perspectives that can complement one another.
Dr. Peter Ochieng, Director and Head of Department, Senior Citizens Affairs, said intergenerational solidarity should bring these strengths together rather than place generations in competition.
“Intergenerational solidarity means bringing the wisdom and the strength brought by the youth together, so that the two work together as partners and complement one another, so that they achieve the desired goal and therefore a better society, which is harmonious and where people work together," stated Dr. Peter Ochieng.
The emphasis on partnership challenges the perception that ageing is a stage of life that concerns one generation at a time. Instead, it places ageing within the broader life of society, where the experiences of older persons and the energy of younger people can contribute to building stronger communities.
Ageing is often viewed as something that happens much later in life, creating a distance between the young and those already in old age. Yet the discussions at the MDFA highlighted the need to understand ageing as a continuous journey.
The decisions people make during their younger years can influence the quality of life they experience later. Health, financial preparedness, social relationships and access to support systems all become increasingly important as people grow older. This makes conversations around ageing relevant not only to older persons but also to younger generations preparing for their own future.
That point was reinforced by Miss Jane Sibia, a student at the University of Nairobi and Vice Chair of the Association of Medical Students at the University of Nairobi, who challenged the idea that old age is a distant stage that people can begin preparing for later.
“You don’t age by accident. You don’t suddenly turn 60. We all know this is something that is coming up. So we need to look at ageing as a life process and look at it as a life-course approach. That means we need to create the future that we want, the society we want to live in, right now," Miss Jane Sibia weighed in.
Her observation places responsibility for healthy ageing not only on older persons, but also on individuals, communities and government systems that shape people's lives long before they reach old age.
For Kenya, this raises questions about whether existing systems are adequately preparing people for longer lives and whether older persons are able to age with independence and dignity.
The discussion on pensions and social protection therefore formed an important part of the wider conversation. Financial security can determine whether an older person is able to meet basic needs independently or becomes heavily dependent on family members.
The importance of initiatives such as pension planning and social protection is therefore tied to a larger question: how can Kenya reduce vulnerability among older persons while ensuring that they are able to live with dignity?
But financial preparedness is only one part of the ageing equation. The relationship between older parents and their adult children remains one of the more complex issues surrounding ageing in Kenyan society. In many families, caring for parents in old age is viewed as a moral, cultural and familial responsibility.
Yet the expectation that children should automatically provide for ageing parents can become complicated when younger people are simultaneously trying to establish careers, raise their own families, secure housing and achieve financial independence.
Black Tax
The conversation around parental dependency and what is commonly referred to as “black tax” brought this tension into focus.
For some older people, support from their children can be essential, particularly where pensions, savings or other forms of social protection are inadequate. For younger people, however, supporting parents can sometimes come at a stage of life when they are already struggling with their own financial responsibilities.
The question, therefore, is not simply whether children should care for their parents. It is about how families can balance responsibility and care without creating unsustainable expectations for either generation.
This is where stronger social protection, financial planning, and open conversations within families become important. Caring for older persons should not rest entirely on individual families when broader systems can also provide support that allows older people to maintain a degree of independence.
The question of retirement also brought the generational relationship into sharp focus. At 60, many people traditionally transition out of formal employment, creating opportunities for younger workers to enter workplaces and assume greater responsibilities. In a country with a large youthful population seeking employment and leadership opportunities, retirement and succession remain important parts of the intergenerational conversation.
For some, older people stepping aside creates room for younger generations to lead, innovate and bring new perspectives into institutions.
But creating space for young people does not necessarily mean rendering older people irrelevant. Older persons carry years of professional experience, institutional knowledge and lessons accumulated over decades. Removing that experience without a deliberate transition can create gaps in knowledge and leadership.
The answer may therefore lie less in replacing one generation with another and more in creating a structured transition between them. Mentorship can provide one pathway. Older professionals and leaders can use their experience to guide younger people, while younger people can contribute technological skills, fresh ideas and new approaches to problem-solving.
Such an arrangement shifts the conversation from replacement to succession. It also challenges the idea that young and older people must compete for the same space. Yet despite the potential for collaboration, speakers at the forum acknowledged that a disconnect between generations exists.
Professor Edwin Wanjawa said the problem is partly rooted in the way society categorises younger and older people, creating stereotypes that can turn generations against one another.
“Older people are not enemies of young people, and younger people are not the enemies of older people. In fact, we are a team. If a younger person sees an older person, they are seeing who they will become. And when older people see younger people, they see where they have been before,” Professor Edwin Wanjawa commented.
The observation speaks to a broader problem of age-based stereotypes. Older people can sometimes perceive younger people as impatient, irresponsible, or unwilling to respect established systems, while younger people may view older generations as resistant to change and out of touch. Such perceptions can deepen the distance between generations if they are not challenged through meaningful interaction.
Technology has become another point of difference between the generations. Younger people have generally grown up in an increasingly digital environment, while some older people have had to adapt to technologies that were introduced later in their lives.
This difference can sometimes create frustration, particularly when younger people expect older persons to learn and adapt at the same pace.
However, the digital divide is not simply about who knows how to operate a smartphone or navigate a digital platform. It can influence access to information, communication, financial services and public services. As more aspects of everyday life move online, digital literacy increasingly becomes part of social inclusion.
The intergenerational approach discussed at the forum provides an opportunity to rethink this relationship. Young people can provide technological support and knowledge, while older persons can contribute experience, institutional memory and perspective.
Erastus Maina of HelpAge Kenya argued that closing this gap requires effort from both sides rather than expecting one generation to do all the adapting. “It’s a question of both generations sacrificing to bring the other generation at par with them. That is how we coexist in such a world,” Maina remarked.
The goal should not be for one generation to imitate the other, but for both to recognise that they possess something the other needs.
At the centre of the discussion was also the need to protect older persons from abuse, neglect and exclusion. Protection cannot be limited to financial assistance. It must also include the right to dignity, independence, participation and access to appropriate care.
Long-term care becomes particularly important as people age and may require assistance with everyday activities. How such care is provided, who provides it and how families, communities and institutions share that responsibility are questions Kenya will increasingly have to confront.
The responsibility to protect older persons also requires society to recognise that ageing does not remove an individual’s right to be heard.
Older people should remain active participants in conversations and decisions that affect their lives, while young people should also be given meaningful opportunities to participate in leadership and policymaking.
The conversation at the MDFA demonstrated that young and older people do not necessarily have to exist in separate spaces. There is value in creating opportunities for both generations to interact, exchange knowledge and understand each other’s experiences.
For Kenya, building that bridge will require more than encouraging young people to respect older persons or asking older people to make way for the youth. It will require deliberate mentorship, open dialogue, stronger social protection systems and a willingness to recognise the contribution of every generation.
The conversation also placed responsibility on parents to understand that their children are individuals with their own ambitions, talents and aspirations. Young people should be given room to make choices about their careers and lives rather than being expected to fulfil ambitions that their parents were unable to achieve.
At the same time, young people have a role to play in ensuring that older persons are not abandoned as they age. The relationship must therefore be based on mutual respect rather than obligation alone.
The 14th edition of the Monthly Dialogue Forum on Ageing ultimately brought the conversation back to a simple but significant reality: today’s young people are tomorrow’s older generation.
The systems Kenya builds today around pensions, social protection, healthcare, long-term care, leadership succession and protection from abuse will eventually affect everyone.
Bridging generations therefore requires more than asking older people to step aside or younger people to wait their turn. It calls for a deliberate transfer of knowledge, responsibility and leadership while ensuring that older persons are allowed to age with dignity and younger people are given the space to shape the future.
The conversation on ageing is, ultimately, a conversation about the kind of society Kenya wants to become, one where growing older does not mean losing one’s dignity, and where being young does not mean being denied a voice.
And as the generations continue to change places, perhaps the most important question is not who should have the space, but how that space can be shared.
