Kenya is preparing a law on the welfare and rights of older persons. Social Protection Principal Secretary Joseph Motari said the Older Persons Bill is finished and now sits with the Cabinet. Once the Cabinet has considered it, the bill will go to Parliament, The Star reported.
According to The Star, the bill would create a stronger legal and institutional framework to protect older persons. It aims to strengthen their participation, dignity, protection, care, development and empowerment. It would also set out how government agencies and other stakeholders coordinate their work for an ageing population.
Motari said the bill was drafted in consultation with older people and other stakeholders. "The older persons of Kenya have what we want them to have, their own Act," he said. He added that the draft was finished "with close consultation of the vulnerable persons themselves."
The PS spoke at the Africa-Asia South-South Dialogue on Population Ageing. The dialogue was part of the 2026 Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on Population Ageing in Hangzhou, China. It brought together African and Asian stakeholders to share approaches to care, social security and the protection of older people.
Motari named two laws as key milestones: the Social Protection Act 2025 and the Persons with Disabilities Act 2025. He said the Social Protection Act had anchored cash transfer programmes in law. That legal foundation, he said, allows the government to take care of the vulnerable.
The government already runs cash transfers for older persons, people with severe disabilities and vulnerable households. The Star reported that anchoring these programmes in law is expected to improve coordination and continuity. Motari said the wider goal is a single comprehensive system that meets the needs of vulnerable citizens, rather than fragmented interventions.