The Australian High Commissioner to Ghana, Gregory Andrews, has called on government to emulate the disability insurance scheme of Australia in order to be well resourced in financing activities of people living with disabilities.

According to him, it is possible for Ghana to replicate Australia’s National Disability Insurance Scheme which supports People Living With Disability (PLWD).

“In Australia, everyone who pays tax will pay a little more into a special bucket which we call the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

"So every tax payer puts money into this bucket to support other Australians with disability and Ghana can also adopt it,” he stated.  

Mr. Andrews made the comments during the official handing over of a soap factory constructed for the PLWD at Akumadan in the Offinso North District of the Ashanti region.  

The GH₵ 297,000 project was funded by Australia’s Direct Aid Programme with support from Techiman based Center of Posterity Interest Organization (COPIO) and Offinso North District Assembly.

The facility is aimed at empowering PLWD within the district with employable skills to improve upon their livelihoods.

The Australian High Commissioner to Ghana said the facility will enhance the dignity of PLWD whilst ensuring their inclusion in the community.

“I am excited about this project because of its role in ensuring adequate supply of soap in the community to make it easier for residents to maintain the practice of hand washing which is necessary in helping minimise the spread of COVID-19,” he added.

He reaffirmed Australia’s commitment to help improve services and opportunities for PLWD, urging the Ghana Federation of Disability (GFD) to make good use of the factory to justify the investment committed to the project.

For his part, Executive Director for Center for Posterity Interest Organization, Mustapha Yeboah, underscored the positive impact the facility will have in the lives of the PLWD.

He therefore encouraged them to maintain the place in order to benefit future generations. 

Chairman of Offinso North branch of the Federation of Disability Organization, Paul Kwabena Fosu, expressed gratitude to Australian High Commission for the gesture.

Since it completion, the soap making factory at Akumadan has already trained more than 100 PLWD in the Offinso North District to enable them to become self-reliant.