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Aisha Zayed Al Ali
 

The source of income for the vast majority of older people comes from their pension pay and/or social security subsidy. At such a stage, they are at risk of abuse, especially, when they tend to depend on others for care due to aging progression, and poor health status. It is observed that the number of older people has increased than ever before. On the other hand, the current public facilities do not have the capacity to serve and to accommodate the existing elderly population. Current policies do not include such issues although the pressure on the health and social settings is constantly rising. In the GCC, the demographic transition is still progressing, as the mortality and the fertility rates are dropping causing the population to grow older. This poses definite challenges in the absence of a law or policy in the social, health and legal sectors to protect the rights of elderly people. Relying on the experience of specialists in the field, this brief presents the key research findings from their perspective in order to reach an understanding of such a dilemma and makes recommendations for public policy geared towards overcoming these challenge