Elders Houses: Friends in Need
03 November, 2014Khartoum (Sudanow) Despite his impaired vision, this elderly man of 75 seemed satisfied with his stay at Addaw Hajjouj House for Elders in Central Khartoum North.
‘’This is my home and the workers and the residents around here have become my family,’’ said the old man who chose to identify himself by his initials A.B.
He said though he had got married several times, yet he had had no offspring. And when he lost his eyesight he had nobody to look after him.
He said he had had a building contracting business and when he became blind one of his closest friends offered to go ahead with the work. But to his misfortune, his friend embezzled the money and, further, sold a house he owned and disappeared. “I had no first degree relatives to care for me, so I had to move to this house,’’ he told Sudanow in an interview.
Another resident, who also chose to identify himself by the initials K.A, said he was divorced and had nobody to look after him so he moved to the elders house. He said he previously worked in Saudi Arabia and when he returned to Sudan , he lived with some relatives in Omdurman. But having spent all his savings from his work abroad, he could not pay the room rent. ’’I left the room so my relatives could let it to someone else who could pay them. I had no choice but to come to this house,’’ he said. He said the house staff renders the residents utmost care. “This has become our home and the officials here provide us with all what makes our stay a comfortable one,’’ he said.
Another resident, M.H, said he had left his family over a dispute with his wife and had constantly turned down pleas from his sons to let them take him back home.
Addaw Hajjouj House for Elders was initially set in 1935 under the name ‘’Al Malja’a’’ which literally translates shelter or sanctuary. In 1984 the house was rehabilitated by the late philanthropist Addaw Hajjouj and was renamed after him.
“The house accommodates a lost elder until he is reunited with his family and in case no family member is found , he continues to stay” said Amr Ibrahim Mustafa, the house administrative director.
He said some 98 percent of the residents are beggars and a vast number of them are non-Sudanese.
He said some 49 residents are living in the house on permanent basis, including Ethiopians, Egyptians and Southern Sudanese and that 80 percent of residents are widows or divorcees who lost contact with their kin. The house initially accommodated both males and females and with the changing circumstances the females were moved to the Assajana House for Elders, Mustafa has said.
He said the House was expanded and rehabilitated in order to create a favourable environment for the residents who need special health care.
The official has , meanwhile, called upon all Sudanese to cooperate with elders homes for better care for this highly vulnerable category.
‘’There is need for close cooperation between government bodies, NGOs, and the different sectors of the society in order to create a good environment for these people at all social, health and psychological levels,’’ he said.
Assajjana House for Elders is dedicated solely for female elders .It is located in the Assajana neighbourhood of Southern Khartoum.
The place is a house with a spacious yard covered with shady trees and contains several nicely furnished rooms that give the residents an air of an ordinary Sudanese family home..Residents are grateful for the excellent care rendered to them by the staff. ‘’We are one family here and the workers treat us like their mothers, ‘’ according to one resident.
House director Aisha Mohammed El Hassan said the place houses twenty ladies who had no first degree relatives. In addition to the Sudanese nationals, the house also accommodates three Ethiopians, and three Southern Sudanese.
She said foreign elders are accepted after consultation with their countries embassies and the UNHCR. ‘’The residents receive integrated care that includes lodging, clothing, food, medication, social and psychological guidance in addition to recreation,’’ said Aisha.
The house has a feeding unit run by a food specialist and also has a clinic and a medical laboratory. There is also a unit for social guidance that studies the residents case –by-case in anticipation for possible reunification with their families. This unit also oversees psychological and social rehabilitation of the residents.
‘’ Our doors are open for the NGOs , the universities and the public at large to organize galas and recreation activities for the elders as one way of connecting them with the society and in order to drive away any feeling of loneliness from them,’’ Aisha further said.
‘’Such programmes can give the elders a feeling that they are part of the society that sympathizes with them ,’’ she added.
She said in that connection, the House celebrates national and religious holidays, and further, organizes an annual celebration of the International Mother’s Day.
Deputy director for elders houses , head of the food unit at the Federal Ministry of Social Development and Welfare Eiman Ahmed Abdalla said the establishment of elders houses was dictated by the increasing social and the negatives of social urbanization.
She said elders houses give priority of residence to elders with no first degree relatives to look after them.
The houses do not accept carriers of contagious diseases and mental disorders who might harm the other residents, she said.
She said sometimes they overlook the regulations in order to put this weak category out of harms way.
She said the social security police watches the streets for stray citizens and beggars and takes them to Dar Al-Rashad (house for guidance) where they are classified and studied case-by-case and, where possible, reunite them with their families or, else, send them to the elders homes.
She said her Ministry appoints administrative and social guidance cadres with a view to providing these senior citizens with food, clothing, medication and social guidance.
The Ministry’s food unit is run by a nutrition specialist who cares for the residents feeding programmes. The Ministry has also a first aid unit besides a social studies unit to care for the elders psychological well-being.
Some social researchers have belittled the alarm shown by some citizens over the growing tendency to put some elders in such houses. They argue that such a tendency is alien to the Sudanese culture that appreciates extended families and family life.
‘’ Two houses for the elders in Sudan is not a phenomenon , given the changing conditions created by the pressing economic hardships and displacement due to security unrest in the country, ’’ maintains Fatima Salim , a lecturer at the Sudan University of Science and Technology, who also chairs the scientific research administration at the unit against violence towards women and children.
She warned that although there is need for such houses because of the objective reasons that created the problem, there is fear that some family members may be needlessly persuaded to send their elders to these houses just to get rid of them ‘’If such a thing should happen , then this could constitute a deviation from the values of religion that preach commitment to the care and welfare of relatives,’’ she said.
She urged researchers in related domains to come out with ideas and solutions that address the root causes of such problems. ‘’All official and social bodies should deal seriously with these problems and the government should put more effort to support and protect our senior citizens,’’ she said.
For her part social services specialist Sarra Abbo of the University of Medical Sciences and Technology has called upon the society to open up towards the elders and involve them in social activities.
‘’What the elders need most is to meet others, especially persons of their age. They need to have friends and they need to feel that they are human beings ,’’ she said.
‘’They need to be reminded of what they had done for the society when they were younger and that they are still useful, ‘’ she said.
She proposed the creation of special clubs for the elders where they can meet their peers, because isolation from social activity could lead them to feel neglected and morally incapable. ‘’Such clubs can render necessary psychological counseling to the elders , raise their morale and, accordingly, stem the need to send them to the elders houses, ’’ she further argued.
The noble sentiments expressed by these researchers towards the elders are well entrenched in the Moslem faith. Over fourteen hundred years ago the Holy Kora’an enjoined the faithful to have mercy on their parents and not treat them in a harsh way. '' Allah enjoins that you should not worship but Him and to do good to your parents. And whenever either of them becomes old you should not be bored with him or raise your voice in his presence.’’
The Prophet Mohammad has predicted that whoever had taken mercy on an old person (Sheikh) would sure find someone who would care for him when he becomes old. Moslem history tells that the Moslem rulers, princes and the well-to-do had built homes for elders, orphans, the sick, the poor and the homeless.
Equally, the Sudanese society had always been that of extended families where one supports all and all support one .That is why until now the grandma(habboba) and the grandpa (jiddu) are deeply respected and esteemed in the Sudanese homes.
E N D
YH/ AS
Photo of the Week
Khartoum (Sudanow) — In just three days, the war in Sudan will complete its third year since it erupted on April 15, 2023. The conflict pits the Sudanese Armed Forces, supported by allied forces, against the rebel militia and its backers at both regional and international levels. Experts believe this war is no longer purely an internal affair; rather, it has evolved into...
More-
13 April, 2026
Stories from the Heart of the Battlefield War and the Growing Suffering of People with Disabilities
Khartoum (Sudanow) — As the war in Sudan enters its fourth year, and destruction has affected everyone, the suffering of people with disabilities has doubled. This vulnerable group faces severe risks due to war, displacement, and the difficulty of accessing medical and humanitarian aid, in addition to the near-total collapse of educational, medical, and rehabilitation services. To understand the scale of suffering and t...
Contact Us
Address: Sudan News Agency (SUNA) Building, Jamhoria Street, Khartoum - Sudan
Mobile:+249 909220011 / +249 912307547