CEDAW/C/PHI/Q/6/Add.1 Participation of Women Agrarian Reform Communities The Agrarian Reform Department has established 1,704 Agrarian Reform Communities (ARCs) as of December 2005. Agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) already reached to 1,048,361, 22% of them are female. Beneficiaries in ARCs are organized into cooperatives and/or People’s Organizations. Of the total membership in these organizations, 192,718 or 38% are female members. Women are well represented in the board of these organizations. At present, they comprise 30% of the duly elected Board of Directors. 44% of 34,769 ARBs who actively participate in committees are women. They are also involved in the planning, implementation and monitoring and evaluation of programs and projects of ARCs and are also active in barangay activities. 29. Please provide information on the situation of older women, including the impact of migration on them, and indicate what specific measures are in place to address the situation of older women, particularly in rural areas. The elderly comprise 3.8% of the total population as of 2000, elderly women slightly more than men (1.24) (NSO, 2000) Seventy-five percent (75%) of senior citizens, or 4,279,170 out of 5,705,591, are current members of the National Federation of Senior Citizens. Approximately 1,300 Offices of the Senior Citizen Affairs (OSCA) operate in 85% of the nation’s cities and municipalities. Older women live longer than elderly men. As of 2002, the average life expectancy for female was 73.10 years while for male it was 67.60 years. They continue to play the role of the nurturer in the family, taking care of their husbands as well as their grandchildren. While statistics say women live longer than men, these statistics do not tell about the quality of women’s long lives. In the Philippines, primary areas of concern of the elderly are those related to health, activeness and dependency (Isis International, 2000). The responsibility of caring for the elderly rests heavily on the household, even while the demand for this is great for poor families, who cannot afford care for their elderly. The Philippine government, through the Republic Act 9257 (The Expanded Senior Citizens Act) continually provides privileges for the elderly, and enjoins private institutions to do so as well. The following benefits are articulated in the law: ! 20% discount on the purchase of medicines; ! 20% discount in land transportation, air and sea-based vessels; ! 5% discount on the purchase of prime and basic commodities; ! Free medical and dental privileges in government medical facilities The Bill on the Magna Carta for Women includes protection and promotion of the rights of Older Women, defined in the bills as women sixty (60) years of age and above, and provides protection for older women “from neglect, abandonment, domestic violence, abuse and exploitation.” 29