Nitoni Osain, Yenagoa
The Voice of Disability Initiative (VDI), in collaboration with Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities ,JONAPWD Bayelsa Chapter, has called on Gov. Douye Diri, to ensure access to education for persons with disabilities.
The appealed was made during a Life Skills Training Workshop for Out-of-School Adolescent Girls with Disabilities, in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa capital.
The 2-day programme also involved a Sensitization/Dialogue meetings with Parents/Guardians of Adolescent Girls with Disabilities of both cohorts in a separate session.
The programme which took place at the Gold Tulip Hotel, Onopa, Bayela State brought together over 90 Out-of-School Adolescent Girls with Disabilities together with over 90 parents/guardians in Bayelsa.
Our Correspondent reports that the participants at the Life Skills Training workshop include Adolescent Girls with Albinism, the Physically Challenged, Deaf, Blind among others adolescent girls from minority clusters of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs).
The Life Skills Training workshops for Out-of-School Adolescent Girls with Disability is part of the activities under the 18-Months Education Access project being funded by the IGNITE Consortium through Urgent Action Fund (UAF-Africa).
Speaking at the Life Skills Training Workshop, the Executive Director of Voice of Disability Initiative ,VDI, Barr. Catherine Edeh stated that the IGNITE Consortium through Urgent Action Fund (UAF-Africa).
Is currently funding Voice of Disability Initiative (VDI) to implement a project on “Increasing access to education for 320 out-of-school adolescent girls with disabilities in Bayelsa and FCT.
Sharing her personal experience of how she was able to navigate all odds to be where she is today, she emphasized that educating out of school adolescent girls with disabilities is a collective responsibility.
She called on all stakeholders to sit up and encourage the children never to give up in life, but to stay focused to their life goals.
She also encouraged the parents/guardians of children with disabilities to support their children, especially those with disabilities to attain their life goals.
Her words: “The two activities features experience-sharing, evaluations, mentorship, sensitization for out-of-school adolescent girls with disabilities as well as experience-sharing and sensitization among parents/guardians of children with disabilities.
“We want to commend the efforts of Bayelsa State Government, and also called on Governor Douye Diri the Executive Governor of Bayelsa State.
“To ensure that access to education for persons with disabilities, especially out-of-school adolescent girls with disabilities are prioritized,” he said.