The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has called for stronger social, healthcare and protection systems to ensure that older persons in Nigeria live with dignity, security, independence and full enjoyment of their human rights.
The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Chief Tony Ojukwu, SAN, made the call on Tuesday in Abuja at a press conference to commemorate the 2026 International Day of Older Persons, with the theme, “The Age of Longevity: Rethinking Systems for Longer Lives.”
Ojukwu said the increasing number of people living longer required governments and society to rethink existing institutions, policies and systems to ensure they adequately support people throughout their lives.
He said longevity should not be regarded as a burden, stressing that older persons possess knowledge, experience, skills, values and institutional memory that remain valuable to families, communities and the nation.
According to him, older persons are not merely recipients of care but “right holders and active members of our society” whose voices must be reflected in decisions and policies affecting their lives.
The NHRC boss said the rights of older persons were not special privileges but the same universal and indivisible rights guaranteed to every individual, and listed some of the rights as dignity, equality and non-discrimination, life, health, social security, adequate standard of living, family life, property, participation, freedom from violence, abuse, exploitation and neglect, access to justice, and the right to live independently and participate fully in society.
Ojukwu expressed concern over challenges confronting many older persons in Nigeria, including inadequate income, limited access to healthcare, social isolation, inadequate social protection, delayed or insufficient pension benefits, discrimination, abandonment, neglect, abuse and exploitation.
The Executive Secretary said the NHRC had continued to strengthen its interventions through advocacy, public enlightenment, monitoring, investigations, stakeholder engagement, capacity building and collaboration with relevant institutions.
Ojukwu called for collective action involving federal, state and local governments, civil society organisations, professional associations, trade unions, traditional institutions, community leaders and families to protect the rights and welfare of older persons.
He reaffirmed the Commission’s commitment to promoting and protecting the rights of older persons, saying the Commission would continue to raise awareness, monitor situations affecting older persons, engage duty-bearers and advocate stronger implementation of laws and policies.
Speaking on behalf of the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, Dahiru Bobo disclosed that Nigeria had 140,927 refugees and asylum seekers, while 3,679,757 internally displaced persons (IDPs) were either living in camps or host communities as of September 1, 2026.
Bobo said elderly men and women, including persons with disabilities, were among the displaced population and required specific attention in humanitarian responses.
“It is important to recognise the unique challenges faced by the elderly, so that in tailoring age-friendly responses, they are also given a voice,” he said.
He stressed that older persons were “right holders and not merely beneficiaries of humanitarian assistance,” adding that the Commission remained committed to protecting and managing populations displaced from their countries of origin or habitual residence and those forced from their homes by natural or human-made disasters.
Earlier, the President of the Civil Society for the Rights of Older Persons in Nigeria (COSROPIN), Senator Eze Dalington Ajoku, called for stronger systems to respond to Nigeria’s growing ageing population.
Ajoku said the country’s healthcare, social protection, housing, transportation, employment, pension and community support systems must be strengthened to ensure that increased life expectancy becomes an opportunity rather than a burden.
He described longevity as one of humanity’s significant achievements, but stressed that living longer must also mean living with dignity, security, independence, good health, social inclusion and respect for fundamental human rights.
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