09 Apr 2014

People with disabilities are left out of the mainstream society, said Ms Thapelo Moalosi from the National Disability Coordinating Committee at a kgotla meeting in Tsabong recently.

Ms Moalosi said the principle of inclusiveness could only be achieved through deliberate mainstreaming agenda to promote equality as well as open opportunities for vulnerable members of the society, including disabled people.

“In the pursuit to achieve the objective of creating a platform through which all people benefit equally from the national socio- economic dispensation, President Lt Gen. Seretse Khama Ian Khama has in 2008 laid down a road map with some associated philosophical guidance of the five D’s and that is dignity,” said Ms Moalosi.

She said ensuring that vulnerable people, including those living with disabilities, lived dignified lives took a great deal of efforts, including public awareness on issues involving people living with disabilities.

Ms Moalosi said there was need for participation by all stakeholders, government, civil society and organization of persons with disabilities to focus on issues related to the inclusion of people with disabilities in development, both as beneficiaries and agents of change.

She urged the society, especially caregivers, to use structures such as the District Disability Coordinating Committee and disability associations in their area to get more informed on the rights, opportunities and many other issues pertaining people living with disabilities.

“The society should count on their collective efforts to ensure that people living with disabilities can fend for themselves with less challenges of life,” she said. Mr Sam Brooks, the chairperson of the Tsabong Sub Council, encouraged members of the community to help vulnerable people fit in the society by letting them be seen and heard so they could get the attention they deserved.

Mr Brooks said the Department of Social and Community Development continued to give assistance to the deserving clients, saying vulnerable people are assessed by social workers to determine their eligibility as potential beneficiaries.

“Poverty remains the master challenge that affects vulnerable people especially those living with disabilities,” he said. He added that empowerment and integration of the rights of people living with disability goes a long way in the developments of the district. Ends