By Dr Flavia Galvani, Florian Juergens

The Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar strives to build a prosperous and peaceful society that ensures sustainable development, wellbeing and gender equality for everyone. To achieve this, the Government has put in place strategies and plans to meet the needs, and realize the rights, of each and everyone in society.

It is our commitment to do our utmost to reduce poverty, vulnerability and violence, increase access to essential services, foster social integration, and promote equal rights and opportunity for all Zanzibaris. The Zanzibar Universal Pension Scheme (ZUPS) is a key contribution to the realization of these commitments. The Scheme provides a basic social pension of 20,000 Tanzanian Shilling (US$ 8.7) a month to all Zanzibari residents aged 70 years and above.

At the beginning of 2019, the ZUPS reached close to 30,000 older people. Being fully implemented and funded by the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar, the ZUPS is one of its kind in East Africa. The Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar is proud to be a leader in guaranteeing the rights of older people, and the ZUPS is a cornerstone of our commitment to realizing older people’s right to income security and live lives of dignity and wellbeing. Ensuring that all our older people can live such lives of dignity and wellbeing is a societal task that requires commitment not just from the Government but from all parts of society, including community groups, non-governmental organizations and development partners. I am therefore delighted that this important evaluation of the ZUPS was realized through a close partnership between the Government, researchers, community leaders, older people’s associations and non-governmental organizations. Together we will be able to bring about huge changes that promote the welfare and development everyone, including older people.

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