{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.01828681424446583, 'fraction_numerical': 0.005774783445620789, 'mean_word_length': 5.046511627906977, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 0, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 0, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Aging at Home: The Elderly in Gauteng, South Africa in the Context of COVID-19

This chapter assesses the lives of elderly residents in the Gauteng city-region in South Africa, where the HIV/AIDS pandemic has already placed a disproportionate financial and caregiving burden on the elderly. It uses data from the Gauteng City-Region Observatory's Quality of Life Survey to better understand the challenges for the elderly during the COVID-19 pandemic. It also argues that the elderly may be able to absorb some of the socio-economic shocks of the pandemic better than younger generations but are particularly vulnerable in terms of their physical and mental health. The chapter analyzes a range of variables covering living conditions, health vulnerabilities, and roles within families and households to better understand the vulnerabilities faced by older Black Africans in Gauteng with regard to COVID-19. It scrutinizes how the elderly form part of families and households, and fulfill key caregiving and economic roles in the province.