Despite a growing international awareness/concern, mainstream
development policies in West and other African
nations fail to consider poverty among older people –
reflecting persisting assumptions about a lesser magnitude
and relevance of the poverty threat among the old compared
to the young.
Building on a review of the existing research evidence available
from Nigeria and Ghana, and a secondary analysis of
1980–1996 Nigerian National Consumer Survey data, this
paper explores the potential links that exist between old age
and poverty in the Anglophone West African Context, and
provides indications for the relative extent of poverty among
older and younger age-groups.
The findings, contrary to assumptions, point to a substantial
and possibly greater poverty risk among older compared to
younger adults and identify potential individual, familial,
normative and structural determinants of this heightened
risk. Implications for policy and further research are briefly
discussed.