A pension, a grandson and a phone
Pensioners in Irad are the most reliable savers in the country and the least rewarded for it.
Zholdosh A. · 21 Apr 2024 · Issue 172 min read
The average pension is about 1,200 som a month. Out of this a pensioner buys bread, medicine, electricity, a bus ticket, and a gift for each grandchild's birthday. The last one is not optional. It is paid, as it was paid to her, in love.
I visited an old couple in Talas who live on two pensions, 2,350 together. They told me what changed in ten years. The medicine got more expensive. The bread stayed the same. The grandson who used to ask for sweets now asks for "credit" on his phone. They pay it every month, 20 som. The grandmother says it is the best money she spends, because on the phone she hears his voice and not just his request.
What would help, I asked? They thought for a long time. "A bench near the pharmacy," the grandfather said. "To sit between the queue and the bus."
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