Old,Poor and Alone in Palestine

Abstract

In most societies there has been a progressive transfer of responsibility for caring for the older people from the family to the state. The political context of the Palestinian population of the occupied territories has made this impossible. The paper reports on a large scale survey of the problems of caring for older people in Palestine. It shows significant variations in the problems faced by older people, with those living alone outside refugee camps who are unable to access family support networks more vulnerable than others. The greatest need for intervention is for older people living alone in urban areas. Following a classification of older people, policy options for social care for the most vulnerable groups are explored.