Demographic change and social aging have been discussed for a long time mainly in the context of
Western countries or industrialized countries of the so-called global north, and later the Asian
countries came up to the discussion. Meanwhile, there are fewer studies on how population aging
affects the African societies compared with the above areas, because the accumulation of researches
started recently (Aboderin 2010)1
, and because the African social aging is inconspicuous, having
small ratio of older population2
to the whole population (see Section 2). Demographic change in
Africa, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), is, however, getting more and more attention
because it is the only part of the world that is anticipated to continue increasing its population until
the next century.
There are 54 countries in SSA, and each country has its distinct situation. This paper focuses
on the United Republic of Tanzania (henceforth Tanzania), located in the eastern part of the African
continent. This paper aims to examine demographic changes and the accompanied social problems
especially about social security for older people. The Tanzanian society shares with other less
developed countries in SSA a typical pattern of demographic change and social welfare condition
concerning older people. Through contemplating Tanzania’s context regarding social aging, we can
grasp what is going on with social aging in SSA. The official and universal social security system for
older people in Tanzania is less prepared, and some cases demonstrate severe insecurity of older
people in Tanzania. This study is based on reviews of official demographic data and reports and
academic works on social security system in Tanzania, partly supported by my personal interviews
and field observations in Dar es Salaam. In conclusion, I assert that even demographically “young”
society contains problems related to social aging.
The remainder of this paper is organized as follows: Section 2 gives an overview of
demographic data on SSA and Tanzania respectively. Section 3 illustrates the Tanzanian context
related to social aging problems: Firstly, on official safety nets for older population, and secondly,
on informal care in intimate sphere regarding three situations, namely rural, urban, and shelters.
Section 4 sums up the issues argued in each section and synthesizes into a general assumption of the
social aging problems that might confront Tanzania in the near future. Overall, we will argue that the
2
Tanzanian society should not be considered just as a “young society,” but rather an unprepared
society holding unprecedented augmentation of older population.