Mwinyi to grace national elders' day
Former president Ally Hassan Mwinyi.
What you need to know:
- Today's national elders' day celebrations were preceded by free health checks among the elderly people in and around Arusha.
- Tanzania is marking the elderly people's day in tandem with the United Nations resolution No.45/106 of 1990 which proclaimed October 1 as the day for the elderly people.
Arusha. Former president Ally Hassan Mwinyi will today grace the national elders' day celebrations at the Sheikh Amri Abeid Stadium here.
The celebrations are aimed to recognizing the role of the elderly people in nation building, said the Commissioner of Social Welfare in the Health ministry Dr. Naftali Ng'ondi.
The event will also be used as a rallying platform to render every necessary support to people in advanced age, including free medical treatment.
He said although the government has announced free medical treatment to the elderly, many of them are not accessed the service for unknown reasons.
"This is a challenge that must be addressed by us all", he told journalists in Arusha, noting that the elderly people have to be accessed to free health checks.
Dr Ngondi added that some old people within the society were now leading miserable lives despite the fact that they defended the country in the past wars such as the World War Two and the Kagera War.
"We have also directed that they be given the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) cards to access treatment in various medical centres", he pointed out.
