GFD urges government to re-look at her commitment on Inclusive Education

The Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations (GFD) is asking the government to relook at her commitment on Inclusive Education and make it more suitable for the country

The Government of Ghana in 2018 made commitments at the Global Disability Summit held in London which aimed at implementing laws and policies to protect the rights of people with disabilities

The Government represented by the then Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection Ms Otiko Afisa Djaba, said among other commitments that that the Ministry of Education and the Ghana education Service was committing to accelerating the implementation of the Inclusive Education Policy by increasing the provision of infrastructural facilities to address the diverse learning needs of children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

Government will also prioritize the training of teachers to support inclusive schools and special schools and progressively increase the budgetary allocations for Inclusive Education by 1.5 percent beginning in 2019

The GFD at end of a two day post-summit meeting is however asking government to prioritize the training of teachers across the country to support inclusive education.

Mr Alexander Bankole Williams, Chairman of the National Advocacy Committee of the GFD explained that it should be easy for parents of children with disabilities to enrol their children in the nearest schools within their communities and not have to travel to look for an inclusive school for their children.

The Ghana Federation of Disability Organizations will therefore issue a communique to government on how the organization sought to engage the government in dealing with the respective commitments.

The government of Ghana also made commitment to eliminate stigma and discrimination, to increase economic empowerment of persons with Disabilities, to improve technology and innovation, to enhance the lives of women and girls with disabilities, to mainstream disability needs and concerns in humanitarian activities and to implement the Ghana Accessibility standards

The Global Disability Summit 2018 had four core themes which are dignity and respect for all, inclusive education, routes to economic empowerment and harnessing technology and innovation.

The Department for International Development (DFID) UK and other hosts of the summit are working at the country level to develop an accountability mechanism to support and monitor progress made against the new commitments.

The Special Mothers Project is one of the organizations supported by the DFID to participate in the Global Disability Summit 2018 in the United Kingdom. The SMP is an advocacy and awareness creation programme on cerebral palsy issues in Ghana. The Project uses the media to advocate for policies that will enhance the lives of families raising children with cerebral palsy in Ghana.

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