The Gender, Children and Social Protection Ministry is putting together a database of persons with disability to enable the ministry facilitate the employment of persons under the group.

Due to their physical disability, such persons are marginalized in society and even the educated amongst them find it difficult to secure decent jobs even though they are qualified for them.

Launching the Ghana Literacy Training Programme for the Deaf in Accra Thursday, Deputy Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Mrs. Della Sowah stressed that “Government takes seriously, issues of disability and it is doing all within its powers to make life comfortable for them”.

She therefore noted, “To this end, the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection is working hard to ensure more effective appreciation and inclusion of disability issues in national discourse. We believe this will eliminate stigma and enhance effective integration of persons with disability into the society.”

Mrs. Della Sowah

Mrs. Sowah who is also the Member of Parliament for Kpando, in response to an appeal by the Centre for the Employment of Persons with Disability to help in finding jobs for their members, said the ministry is working to ensure that persons with disability earn a decent living.

“In order to enhance the ability of persons with disability to earn a living, 1,155 persons with disability have been identified and registered by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection for various vocational skills training. This year, the ministry will provide timely, reliable and disaggregated data of persons with disability and mainstream their issues in the national planning process.”

The nationwide literacy training is the initiative of the International Network for Deaf Empowerment (INDE) in partnership with the country chapter of the Christian Literacy Associates and Deaf Mission.

The Deputy Minister has described the literacy programme as timely and essential to empower the deaf in the society.

“The complementary efforts by the International Network for Deaf Empowerment (INDE) in partnership with Christian Literacy Associates and Deaf Mission to reduce the rate of illiteracy among the deaf is highly commendable and I wish to congratulate you on this laudable initiative.

“…the importance of this project to improve the literacy rate of people with hearing challenges cannot be overemphasized.”

The ministry will also facilitate the implementation of the Legislative Instrument (LI) on Persons with Disability Act and ensure that all public buildings are accessible by persons with disability by 2016.

Mr. Francis Botchwey, Executive Director of INDE, said the Network’s vision is to create a literate and self-sufficient deaf society in a mutually respectable world.

“We at the Network are highly hopeful this Project will minimize, if not completely eliminate illiteracy among the deaf in Ghana. We believe this will in turn open working avenues for them in both the formal and non-formal sectors as well as giving them the ability to effectively communicate with the hearing.”

Francis Botchwey called on all to support the project: “We would like to take this opportunity to invite Ministries, Departments and Agencies as well as religious groups, communities and civil society to actively be part of this programme and nominate personnel for training.”

The Executive Director of Centre for the Employment of Persons with Disability, Mr. Alex Tetteh who commended the INDE for the laudable initiative, also appealled to all to support the project financially and with equipment.