Uganda: Aging and Disability

My friend has said to me on more than one occasion: "I am sure I see more PWDs (persons with disabilities) than those counted by the National Population and Housing Census 2014." This blog will look more deeply at the numbers of disabled in different age groups in Uganda.

As the population ages so the number of disabled people increases. By referring to the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey 2011 we can see how the number of PWDs changes with age.

As the population ages so the number of disabled people increases.

The table below shows the numbers of people with at least one impaired function measured in the 6 core areas identified by the Washington Group. The six core functional areas are: Difficulty in seeing, Difficulty in hearing, Difficulty walking or climbing steps, Difficulty remembering or concentrating, Difficulty with self care, Difficulty with communicating.

Table: Percentage of PWDs with at least one core functional impairment by age group

Age range	Estimated % of group	Ratio of PWDs in age group (approximate)
5-9	11.5	1 in 9
10-14	12.3	1 in 8
15-19	12.3	1 in 8
20-29	12.8	1 in 8
30-39	18.5	1 in 5
40-49	31.4	1 in 3
50-59	48.8	1 in 2
60+	66.8	2 in 3
Total age 5 and over	19.2	1 in 5
Total age 10 and over	21.4	1 in 5
Total age 15 and over	24.1	1 in 4

Looking at the table we can see that the percentage of PWDs within each age group remains fairly constant until the age of 30; about 1 in 8 to 1 in 9 people are disabled. After 30 years old the number of disabled begins to climb sharply. For the 60 years plus age group 2 out of every 3 people have some kind of disability.

No one figure for the total number of PWDs in Uganda will ever be satisfactory. I hope this explains what my friend sees.