By EMMANUEL AFONNE

Dr Eugenia Ndukwe, Convener, National Pre-Retirement Summit, says she will establish Aging Centres for Productivity and Empowerment across Nigeria to promote productive ageing.

Ndukwe, who is also the founder, XEM Consultants Ltd., made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday in Abuja.

She said the aging centre for productivity and empowerment would be established in communities across the country, with a flagship centre in Agulu, Anambra, her hometown, in honour of her mother, Mrs Evelyn Iloanya.

Ndukwe said the flagship centre would commence full operations in the first quarter of 2027 and named Evelyn Iloanya Aging Centre for Productivity and Empowerment.

She said the initiative was designed to provide a purposeful environment where older persons could live, learn, earn and remain useful to society.

“We will accommodate those who wish to reside there and those who will be coming for daily visits.

“It will be a home of purposeful ageing, not a waiting or transit place for the end.”

Ndukwe said the model would combine residential care with learning, enterprise, mentorship, healthcare and community engagement.

She said residents aged 65 years and above would have access to comfortable accommodation, nutrition, caregiving, routine medical checks, medication supervision and wellness monitoring.

She said they would also engage in low-stress enterprises based on their interests, skills and capabilities.

According to her, such activities will include gardening, food processing, traditional cooking, tailoring, crafts, soap and bead making, snail farming and pure water production.

“Every elder earns from what they produce.”

Ndukwe said the centre would also have a digital studio where residents could share recipes, folktales, proverbs, local history and life experiences through videos and podcasts.

She said basic digital skills would also be provided to enable older persons to remain connected with their families and communities.

The retirement planning expert said the centre would operate a “grandparent crèche” where older persons would interact with infants and toddlers of working mothers alongside trained caregivers.

She said structured mentorship sessions would also enable residents to transfer knowledge, values, trades, languages and oral history to younger generations.

Ndukwe said National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members would be involved in the management of the centre to encourage interaction between younger and older generations.

“The young manage, the old teach, and both are changed.”

She said the initiative was inspired by her visit to Casablanca, Morocco, in October 2026, where she visited more than 10 homes for the elderly.

Ndukwe noted that while the homes provided care and dignity, residents had limited opportunities for purpose and productivity.”

She said the experience motivated her to develop a model that would combine care with productivity, earning and social impact.

According to her, the centres will be replicated across the country under the national brand, Aging Centre for Productivity and Empowerment.

She said the centres would be sustained through their enterprises, families, partners and sponsors.

Ndukwe called for partnerships with governments, traditional institutions, healthcare providers, private-sector organisations, faith communities, non-governmental organisations and diaspora investors.

She said the initiative would help restore dignity, purpose, income and companionship to older persons while reducing loneliness.

“It will also create jobs, stimulate local enterprises and contribute to preserving indigenous languages and cultural heritage.

“My mother’s mobility is weakened by age, but her mind, her hands and her words remain strong.

“So are those of millions of our mothers and fathers. They deserve a home for purpose,” she said.

Ndukwe has convened the National Pre-Retirement Summit annually since 2024 as part of efforts to promote informed retirement planning and productive ageing in Nigeria.(NAN)

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