DAVAO CITY, Apr. 05 (PIA) – The National Council on Disability Affairs (NCDA) will be pushing for the strengthening of its regional counterparts to ensure thorough implementation of laws that protect and promote the rights of Persons with Disability (PWDs) at the grassroots level.
NCDA-Regional Program Coordinator Ruth Tacujan said NCDA has proposed directions for the Regional Council on Disability Affairs (RCDA) that would focus on the reactivation of its priority sub-committees and enabling Disabled Persons’ Organizations to actively participate in the development process.
Tacujan presented this proposal to the RCDA members in Davao Region during its first quarterly meeting on Tuesday (April 2) at the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD-XI) regional office.
One of the regional sub-committees (RSC) that need to be strengthened is on training livelihood and employment that aims for poverty reduction and enhancement of employment prospects for PWDs.
The Department of Labor and Employment will chair this sub-committee.
For the RSC on accessibility of built, environment, transport and information technology, the Department of Public Works and Highways will be the lead convenor.
Tacujan disclosed that Access Monitoring Teams with the inclusion of PWDs will be organized to start at the local government unit, to help realize the goal of enhancing accessibility to the physical environment, public transportation, knowledge, information and communication.
The RSC on advocacy will have the Philippine Information Agency as chair to spearhead awareness campaign on relevant issues about PWDs through the media, fora and dialogues with the participation of multi-stakeholders.
The RSCs on education and health will be led by the Department of Education and Department of Health, respectively.
Tacujan said all sub-committees will each have representatives from the DPOs and civil society organizations (CSOs), aside from the various national government agencies and provincial LGUs.
She said the proposed directions for RCDAs nationwide are anchored on the Incheon Strategy to “Make the Right Real” for PWDs in Asia and the Pacific.
She added this strategy was adopted during the High Level Inter-Governmental Meeting on the final review of the Asian and the Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons 2003-2012 on November 2, 2012 at Incheon, South Korea, which was attended by 62 countries high level delegations with Disabled Persons’ Organizations (DPOs) and civil society organizations. (PIA-XI/Carina L. Cayon)
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