CITAD Celebrates 2016 International Day of People with Disability

The Center for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) in collaboration with Rights and Privileges of Persons with Disability Development Initiative have commemorated the international day of people living with disability where the disabled, governments officials, civil society activists, media, institutions, special education bodies, societal reorientation agencies and entrepreneurs were brought together as presentations on different topics were made.  In his welcome remarks, the Executive Director of CITAD who was represented by Training Coordinator Malam Ahmad Yakasai said ‘’like other people, people living with disability have a lot to offer and that is why every year CITAD find it necessary to commemorate the day with especially the people concerned in attendance and other relevant stakeholders so that their demands are deliberated and advocated for with a view to improving their lives’’. Also in his goodwill message, the chairman, Rights and Privileges of Persons with Disability Development Initiative Ishaq S. Ishaq maintained that disability is not inability as such the disabled need to be even treated more than the abled as there are a number of brilliant people among them who will make vital contributions to societal progress.

Three presentations were taken namely: Economic Inclusion of People with Disability by Adnan Daneji, Senior Special Assistant to Kano state Governor on people living with disability, Digital Inclusion of People living with Disability by Malam Ibrahim Umar Abdulkari, a teacher at Special Education Tudun Maliki and Educational Inclusion of People Living with Disability by Professor Jibrin Muhammad of the Special Education Department, Bayero University Kano. Malam Ibrahim Umar Abdulkarim regrets that the visually impaired are facing a greater challenge especially when they come to write the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) as they don’t have Braille Notes, he said ‘’the visually impaired need to be taught how to use computers (Braille Note) to sit for UTME and I will be glad to teach my fellow visually impaired so long as Braille Notes will be provided anywhere’’.

To fight stigmatization for people living with disability and carry them along in order to realize their potentials, the Managing Director of L&Z Farms has informed the event that he reserved one employment slot for one disabled person and also made a donation of twenty thousand naira as a startup capital to another member of the disabled associations.

The United Nations has since 1992 set aside December 3rd of every year as a day for People Living with Disability, and each year a theme is set to be the guiding principle for the global campaign on improving the lives and empowering the disabled. The theme for 2016 is: Achieving 17 Goals for the Future We Want, which draws attention to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and how these goals can create a more inclusive and equitable world for persons with disabilities.

Several dignitaries have graced the occasion which included: Head, Department of Special Education, Sa’adatu Rimi College of Education Kano, representative of Honourable Commissioner of Agriculture, Hajiya Jummai Gawuna, Special Adviser to Kano state Governor on Disabled Women, Adnan Daneji, Senior Special Assistant to Kano state Governor on People Living with Disability, leaders and members of various associations of disabled people unions, media, civil society organizations and many other individuals.