Age-Inclusive ICT Innovation for Service Delivery in South Africa: A Developing Country Perspective

Vera Roos is Research Professor in the Ageing and Generational Dynamics programme in the Optentia Research Unit (AGenDA) at the North-West University, and an Affiliate Research Fellow of the Institute of Population Ageing at the University of Oxford. As a socio-gerontologist, she focuses on relational experiences and, from a community psychology perspective, on the contributions of older individuals in challenged contexts. Vera has presented her research on topics related to enabling interpersonal contexts, loneliness, friendship, and intergenerational relations at national and international conferences, and has published widely, including three edited books. She developed the Mmogo-method®, a projective visual data-collection tool to enable research participation despite age, language or cultural barriers and to obtain layered information about personal, relational, and group experiences. Findings from this visual method informed the development of a relational theory, Self-Interactional Group Theory (SIGT), and intergenerational interventions. Vera’s commitment to promoting the well-being of older people in relation to their contextual realities prompted the development of an information and communication eDirectory system, Yabelana, with context-specific information for use on smart and older generation mobile phone devices. Vera Roos is a rated scientist of the South African National Research Foundation.

Jaco Hoffman (DPhil, Oxon) is Professor of socio-gerontology in the Optentia Research Unit, North-West University (Vanderbijlpark Campus), where he leads the Ageing and Generational Dynamics in Africa (AGenDA) programme. He is also Professorial Fellow at the Institute of Population Ageing, University of Oxford, where he co-ordinates the UN-endorsed African Research Network on Ageing (AFRAN). AFRAN brings together African and international institutions and individuals from academia, policy, and practice to develop and expand African research and training capacity on ageing. He is an Honorary Professor in the Institute of Ageing in Africa, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, a past president of the South African Gerontological Association (SAGA), and founding member of the South African Older Persons Forum. Jaco co-directs, with Professor Sebastiana Kalula (UCT), the International Longevity Centre (ILC) South Africa, and is a director of the International Federation of Ageing (IFA) Board. His research experience relates broadly to the social sciences (sociology, anthropology), with specialization in the multidisciplinary field of socio-gerontology, including topics such as HIV/AIDS, poverty, (long-term) care, families, and community development.