“Future Vision for Elderly Services” Dialogue Forum kicks off in Seeb

Seeb: The dialogue forum on “The Future Vision for Elderly Services” began today in the Wilayat of Seeb, Muscat Governorate. The forum is organised by the Ministry of Social Development, represented by the Department of Elderly Affairs.

The opening ceremony of the forum was sponsored by His Excellency Sheikh Rashid bin Ahmed Al Shamsi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Social Development.

The forum aims to identify the aspirations and expectations of the elderly regarding the services provided in the future and monitor the mechanism for their implementation, discuss the care and protection services provided to the elderly, analyze the current situation of this group and determine their aspirations and future vision for services, and determine the mechanism for benefiting from social networks and social support to improve their quality of life, in addition to promoting active aging for the elderly and ways to integrate them into society as an effective partnership.

Mrs. Maani bint Abdullah Al Busaidi, Director General of Family Development at the Ministry of Social Development, said that the Sultanate of Oman has paid great attention to the Omani people and strives to provide them with everything they need in various economic, social, cultural and other fields. They are the continuous development plans and the basic pillar of construction and development.

The Ministry of Social Development emphasized in the social work strategy, as it considered social care an essential element of social protection that contributes to ensuring the security and cohesion of society, as it provides social care programs and services to meet the needs of needy groups, including the elderly.

She added that the Ministry, in providing services to the elderly, relies on studying and assessing their needs and desires according to a sustainable system based on empowerment, integration and capacity development, and focused on human rights, social capital and effective partnership.

A memorandum of cooperation was signed between the Ministry of Social Development and the Ihsan Association, stipulating that the Ministry will support the Association in the field of studying cases in need of home care services by providing the necessary information and data, providing the necessary transportation to visit cases by the Association’s employees, following up on cases benefiting from home care services by the Ministry’s employees in the governorates, and cooperating with the Association in cases with exceptional circumstances related to providing care requirements and community integration. It also stipulates that the Association will adopt the item of preparing homes and building an annex according to what is recommended by the case study prepared by specialists from the Ministry of Social Development.

The forum witnessed the holding of two dialogue sessions on: Active Aging, and Future Aspirations and Visions for Services for the Elderly. In the first dialogue session, three working papers were presented, including: “The aspirations of the Ministry of Social Development to raise the quality of life for the elderly”, “The impact of physical therapy and physical activity on healthy aging in the Sultanate of Oman”, and “Cities friendly to the elderly”.

The second dialogue session included the presentation of three working papers entitled: “Towards a Decent Life for the Elderly”, “Advantages of the Elderly in the Social Protection Fund”, and “Towards an Integrated Future Vision for Services for the Elderly”.