Ubuntu in gerontological social work : a community-led care model

The ubuntu principles of societal responsibility emphasise the communal expectation and moral obligation of society to care for each other to achieve communal prosperity. These expectations have implications for framing social work practice with older people. The value of Ubuntu in social work is evident. However, there is limited theorisation, exploration and application of Ubuntu in social work with vulnerable groups, particularly older people. This chapter draws on existing literature and lived experiences of 29 older people in Uganda to explore how Ubuntu relates to the care for older people in Uganda. They debate the ideologies that have suppressed Ubuntu and highlight the ways in which Ubuntu continues to prevail. This chapter contributes to the decolonising of African scholarship by developing an Ubuntu-driven and community-led model for supporting older people derived from the voices of older people in Uganda. We conclude the chapter with an examination of the role of social workers in sustaining Ubuntu in gerontological social work.