The creation of a border between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan after the collapse of the Soviet Union has divided communities and hindered access to resources, such as farmland, water supplies and public services. Competition for these resources has exacerbated tensions between communities on either side of the border.

Older people have a traditional role as advisors and mediators of conflict, so they have an important role to play in conflict resolution in Kyrgyz border communities.

Aims

In consultations carried out in Kyrgyzstan, older people said they struggle to pay for expensive services and medication, and lack opportunities to earn money. HelpAge International is working with two local non-governmental organisations (NGOs) – the Foundation for Tolerance International (FTI) and the Resource Centre for the Elderly (UMUT) – to support 15 older people's groups and improve the lives of older people in the country.

Project activities

• A network of 15 older people’s groups has been set up throughout the country to strengthen their engagement with local and national government, and improve older people’s quality of life.
  
• Older people are piloting community initiatives, such as laundry and bath houses, using a mini-grants scheme. They use their project experience as the basis for campaigning – for example, for safe drinking water.
  
• FTI is training older people to advise younger members of the community on how to address specific local problems, such as rights violations, and how to mediate in conflicts.
  
• Information-sharing takes place through training workshops, exchange visits between groups, a project newsletter and round-table discussions with NGOs and the government.
  

Achievements

• One older people's group in Balykchy used some of its grant money to produce bulletins for older people on 12 key issues relating to their rights and wellbeing.
• In Toruk, older people constructed a yurt (felt tent) as an office. The yurt is hired out for weddings to generate additional income for the group. Older participants organise activities with the local school to make links between the generations and to promote tolerance among people living on the border with Uzbekistan.
• Telephone lines have been set up in Ak-Olon and Jar-Kyshtak. Community members now have contact with family members who live far away.
• The network has resulted in vulnerable older people becoming more involved in society.
• Older people’s self-esteem and confidence have improved. They are gaining more respect within their communities as they show that they can make decisions and solve problems in the wider community.

The future

HelpAge International and Resource Centre for the Elderly (UMUT) , supported by the European Commission's TACIS Institution Building Partnership Programme, will continue to work with the UN Department for Economic and Social Affairs. This partnership aims to support the Kyrgyz government to implement its commitments to the 2002 Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing.

A good practice manual was launched in September 2005 at a conference involving the government, civil society and international organisations. The manual is being distributed to other NGOs that are interested in developing self-help activities for older people and involving them in conflict mediation. The manual also serves as an advocacy tool to demonstrate how older people can make a difference.

Older people, NGO representatives and senior government officials participating in the conference have developed a strategy to implement the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing in Kyrgyzstan.

HelpAge International plans to extend its work in Kyrgyzstan to target older people living in mono-enterprise towns. These are towns where single industries have collapsed since Soviet rule, often leaving older populations isolated, impoverished and unable to access services.