CFAS Organizes a Programme on Role of the Youth in Promoting Healthy Ageing

As part of its activities to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the University of Ghana, the Centre for Ageing Studies (CFAS) organized an event that was themed “Promoting Healthy Ageing in Contemporary Society: Role of the Youth”. This programme was organized on 28th March 2023 at the Cedi Conference Centre, University of Ghana. Attendees to the event included students and faculty from various Departments, including Social Work, Sociology, Religion, and Psychology, stakeholders of CFAS, and some older persons. The programme was sponsored by the Department of Economics, University of Ghana and Gully Hill Pond, USA.
The programme began with a prayer from Rev. Dr. Samuel Ayete-Nyampong, followed by welcome remarks from Prof. Mavis Dako-Gyeke, the Director of CFAS. In her speech, Prof. Dako-Gyeke, expressed her gratitude to all present for attending the event and urged them to pay keen attention to the presentations, as well as ask questions and make contributions when necessary. The Chairman for the event, Mr. Charles Amo Tobbin also thanked CFAS for organizing the programme, recognizing that it created an avenue for the deliberation on how young people could support older persons. Prof. Dan. Frimpong Ofori, the Provost of the College of Humanities, added that issues of healthy ageing are gradually gaining attention in contemporary society, hence, it was essential that the youth and older people work together towards its attainment in their lives. Furthermore, the Municipal Chief Executive of the Adentan Municipality, Mr. Daniel Alexander Nii-Noi Adumuah, indicated that he was ready to assist students and faculty from the University to conduct research-related activities on ageing in the Adentan Municipality.
Four presentations were delivered during the Programme. The first presentation was given by Rev. Dr. Samuel Ayete-Nyampong of the Trinity Theological Seminary, Accra. In his delivery, Rev. Dr. Ayete-Nyampong emphasized that supporting older persons was a crucial Christian value that accrue blessings for young people. He added that the way the youth treat older persons would determine how they would be treated when they also grow old. The Second presentation was delivered by Dr. Haruna Zagoon-Sayeed (Department for the Study of Religions, University of Ghana) on Islam and Care for the Elderly. He likewise shared that caring for older persons is engrained in Islamic doctrines and it was a way of showing respect and appreciation to this vulnerable population.
In the third presentation, Dr. Alice Boateng (Department of Social Work, University of Ghana), posited that supporting older persons was a core cultural value in the Ghanaian, and it was also a crucial way of promoting social connectedness and intergenerational support in society. Therefore, it is important that the youth engage the elderly to ascertain their needs and support them accordingly. In the final presentation, Mr. Kwamina Abekah-Carter (CFAS) shared that as affiliates of the University of Ghana, it would be useful if the support the university community renders to older persons are guided by the values of the University of Ghana as it is a way of promoting the image and prestige of the University in the larger society.
Representatives of stakeholders of CFAS, including Tobinco Foundation, UNESCO, and Nero Aged Care, among others took turns to deliver solidarity messages. Following this, a youth club named YOUTH ADVOCATES FOR THE ELDERLY (YAFTE) was launched by Rev. Korkor Hammond of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana. A vote of thanks was delivered by Miss Dorothy Asare, and the programme came to an end after a closing prayer.