PK-VSWA-DO-SW-JCD-VA-259-SHIFA SHIFA Welfare Association Project Purpose and Objectives Overall Project Purpose: To strengthen advocacy, dialogue, and collaboration between older people, civil society, and local authorities to address health, rights, and social inclusion issues for older people in Jacobabad. Objectives: 1. Enhance the capacity of older people and local CSOs to engage in advocacy and public discourse on ageing issues. 2. Facilitate evidence-informed dialogues between older people and duty bearers to promote policy change and inclusive practices. 3. Amplify older people’s voices through communication materials and workshops that highlight their rights, needs, and priorities. 4. Foster collaboration and networking among CSOs and OPAs to sustain advocacy efforts beyond the project period. HelpAge International 6 months (1 July 2026 – 31 December 2026) 1st July - 31st December The project aligns with IATI sector codes 15160 (Human Rights) and contributes to SCORE Outcome 1, the WHO Decade of Healthy Ageing 2021–2030, and the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions). Implementing Organisation: SHIFA Welfare Association Project Location: District Jacobabad, Sindh, Pakistan Duration: 1 July 2026 – 31 December 2026 This activity directly contributes to SDG Target 16.7 by strengthening the participation and representation of older people — including older women and persons with disabilities — in local governance and decision-making processes in District Jacobabad, Sindh, Pakistan. Older people in Jacobabad are systematically excluded from planning processes, policy dialogues, and community decision-making forums. Age-based discrimination, mobility limitations, and the absence of structured engagement platforms have left older people without meaningful voice in decisions that directly affect their health, social protection, and rights. Through five inclusive community consultation workshops, older people identify and validate their own priority concerns, ensuring that their lived experiences directly shape the project's advocacy agenda. Three multi-stakeholder policy dialogue sessions bring together older people, Older People's Associations (OPAs), civil society organisations, healthcare providers, and local government representatives to present community-driven evidence and secure documented commitments from duty bearers. Capacity strengthening of 10 CSOs and OPAs equips civil society with rights-based advocacy skills to engage local authorities independently and sustainably. A monthly multi-stakeholder coordination platform — formalised through Memorandums of Understanding — institutionalises ongoing dialogue between older people, civil society, and government beyond the project period. The project directly engages 150 older people (minimum 80 women, 70 men), including at least 20 persons with disabilities, ensuring that the most marginalised voices are included in decision-making spaces. By securing documented commitments from at least three policy dialogue sessions and establishing a functional coordination platform, the project creates measurable accountability between older people and duty bearers. This contribution to inclusive and participatory decision-making advances the core principle of SDG 16.7 — that all people, regardless of age, gender, or disability status, have a right to participate in the decisions that shape their lives. stification1Gender Equality2 — PrincipalMinimum 60% older women participation; gender-sensitive facilitation across all activities; older women face compounded vulnerabilities Project operates in extreme heat context (50°C+); climate-responsive scheduling and environmental sensitivity integrated as cross-cutting measure Core objective — older people's participation in local governance, duty bearer accountability, multi-stakeholder dialogue 9500 9500 Grant commitment by HelpAge International to SHIFA Welfare Association for implementation of the project "Ageing with Dignity: Strengthening Voices and Health Rights of Older People in Jacobabad" under the SCORE Programme, covering the period 1 July 2026 to 31 December 2026.