Older People in Emergencies and Disasters: Compounded Risks and Heightened Vulnerabilities

Age is a significant marker of wisdom and, consequently, insecurities, wherein older people are attributed respect from their accumulated experience yet marginalized due to their heightened vulnerability because of their advanced age. Emergencies and disasters are evidence of older people's inadvertent "invisibility" in crisis response and recovery. Reports on humanitarian actions would repeatedly emphasize the importance of ensuring the safety and security of the most vulnerable in humanitarian response. Despite the availability of global instruments and policies to protect older people, including during crises and emergencies, the gap in implementing adequate and targeted support still needs to be expanded. This paper attempts to make a qualitative exploration based on combined desk research and key informant interviews with diverse actors engaged with older people in the Philippines during humanitarian crises to ascertain the underlying reasons behind this gap. This paper elaborates on two critical points: (1) responding to the needs of older people in the context of the family or household and (2) the presence of limited advocates for the support of older people during crises. These two points are essential in determining the assistance older people receive in addressing their needs, ensuring their rights are protected, and recognizing their agency during humanitarian crises and even displacement.