Acknowledge the concerns of the disabled; assemblies urged

Metropolitan , Municipal and District Assemblies have been urged to actualize the key components of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) into their Medium Term Development Planning.

Mr Charles Nyante, the Programme Coordinator of Voice Ghana, made the call during a one day seminar on CRPD, organized by Voice Ghana, a disability rights organisation, in collaboration with the Local Government Network (LOGNet) and the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) for District Planners.

Some of the key components of the Article 28 of the CRPD enjoins states to recognize the right of persons with disabilities to an adequate standard of living for themselves and families; and take the appropriate steps to safeguard and promote the realization of these rights.

Mr Nyante said the Article also provided guidelines for state parties to ensure equal access by persons with disabilities to clean water, appropriate and affordable services, devices and other related assistance to disability needs.

He said it said there was the need for equal access by persons with disabilities to social protection programmes and poverty reduction programme and access by persons with disabilities to public housing among others.

Mr Nyante said once Parliament ratified the Convention in 2012, there is the need to complement government’s efforts to implement the contents of the CRPD.

He said the Project which is funded by the Disability Rights Fund in USA and is in its second phase had also undertaken a baseline survey on key issues on disabilities in relation to Article 28 CRPD.

Participants at the forum stressed the need for Government to ensure that issues of disabilities are mainstreamed into the Ghana’s forty year National Development Plan.