This paper addresses the dynamics of aging population in Mozambique and it aims to highlight the general situation of the elderly population in Mozambique. Methodologically, this paper is a result of a quick and brief desk study (literature and document review) combined with a snapshot ethnography on the topic in Mozambique. The aging of the population comes with numerous challenges for public policies in developing countries such as the case of Mozambique and requires effective actions by the government and the society to serve this fragment of population in terms of access to health, social security and social assistance systems, to the establishment of actions to fight poverty and deprivation of various kinds. The general findings show that the older population is growing in terms of numbers and they are mainly concentrated in rural areas. The majority of elders in Mozambique are women and they live in the most extreme poverty situation associated to the fact that they carry the burden of the high mortality of working-age adults due to HIV/AIDS and regional conflicts. The traditional safety net of the extended family has become ineffective and unreliable, and older people are increasingly called upon to assume responsibility for the family, and to become the main providers and caregivers of children.

 

Key words: Aging, social protection, demography