A note on aging and the elderly in the less developed world

The elderly in the less developed world are profiled, not merely as dependent on family support, but as care providers and productive agents as well. Evidence is then cited to argue that the family support entitlements of the elderly depends on their contributions to the household. A concluding section briefly comments on the distinct needs of the ailing elderly as compared to the productive or potentially productive old, and argues that policy initiatives for the former will have to be very different from those for the latter.