Experts hold meeting on persons with disabilities, major conference set for Kampala
ARUSHA, Tanzania, December 10, 2009/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The First Meeting of Experts on Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) organised by the EAC Secretariat in collaboration with the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA)’s General Purpose Committee concluded in Kampala, Uganda recently with a call to all the Partner States to scale up commitment to the cause of Persons with Disabilities in the Region. The Experts meeting was convened as a forerunner to the conference on Persons with Disabilities scheduled for 8 to 9 February 2010 in Kampala, Uganda.
The main aim of the upcoming Kampala conference is to put in place mechanisms for the implementation of the Provisions of Article 120 (c) of the Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC, in which the Partner States undertook to closely cooperate in the field of Social Welfare.
The meeting was attended by Members of the EALA General Purpose Committee, Delegates from the Ministries dealing with PWDs in the EAC Partner States, Representatives of the EAC Secretariat and Representatives of Civil Society Organizations dealing with matters of Disabilities.
The meeting was chaired by Ms. Dorah Neema, from the Ministry of East African Cooperation, the United Republic of Tanzania, who hailed the EAC Secretariat for organizing the first-ever meeting on People with Disabilities (PWDs) in the EAC calendar of activities. The EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of Productive and Social Sectors, Mr. Jean Claude Nsengiyumva commended Members of EALA General Purpose Committee for their commitment to the efforts being made to promote the welfare of PWDs in the region.
Mr. Nsengiyumva reiterated that one of the four components which form the priority areas of cooperation among the Partner States is in the area of Social Protection, especially for vulnerable groups including PWDs.
The Deputy Secretary General urged the participants to share information and experiences about their countries’ efforts to draft laws, policies and programmes on disability, the gaps, challenges and process of including disability in the MDGs, together with the current social protection initiatives in the Partner States.
The Chairperson for the EALA General Purpose Committee, Hon. Lydia Wanyoto Mutende, MP, urged for the incorporation of PWDs in the different phases of the entire EAC integration process.
She pointed out that the EAC secretariat in collaboration with EALA, was ready to create synergies to advance the cause of the PWDs at all levels of Government in all the Partner States. In this context, Hon. Wanyoto affirmed that every East African had space and a role to play in the regional integration process.
The EAC Principal Gender and Community Development Officer, Mrs. Perpetue Miganda said the meeting had been convened to put in place mechanisms for the implementation of the Provisions of Article 120(c) of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community. She said the article expresses the Partner States commitment to closely cooperate in the field of “social welfare with respect to among others; the development and adoption of a common approach towards disadvantaged and marginalized groups, including children, the youth, the elderly and PWDs through rehabilitation and provision of among others, foster homes heath care, education and training”.
She further pointed out that all the EAC Partner States signed and ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of PWDs and its optional Protocol, which places an obligation on these States to ensure changes in legislation, policies and programmes to promote the rights of PWDs.
She informed the participants that formulation of an EAC Policy on PWDs was a priority initiative to be undertaken before the end of 2010. In the same vein the EAC Ministers responsible for Social Development in their recent meeting of October 2009, urged Partner States to harmonise and mainstream vulnerable groups in issues of development policies, strategies and plans.
The First Meeting of Experts provided a forum for delegates from Partner States’ institutions and organisations dealing with PWDs to analyse their national legislations, policies and the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in their respective countries. Delegates also identified the gaps, challenges and the processes of including Disability in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the current social protection initiatives in the Partner States.
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East African Community (EAC)
