DISABLED COMPLAIN ... About Computerised Schools Selection

By Stephen Kwabena Effah
Friday, 01 December 2006 (Front Page)

PERSONS With Disabilities (PWDs) have called for a review of the computer placement system to recognise blind candidates who do not offer Mathematics and Science.

They explained that although the blind do not offer mathematics and science subjects, these subject are being used in grading those who write the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).

The appeal was contained in a resolution adopted by the PWDs after four regional sensitization workshops held nationwide to increase their access to productive resources and development opportunities in the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS II) to improve their livelihood and welfare.

Presenting the resolution in Accra at a press conference yesterday, Mrs Sefakor Pomeyie, Chairperson of the Ghana Society for the Physically Disadvantaged, also called for the exemption of the deaf from taking part in English and French orals, saying “a lot of the deaf fail English partly because they normally do not have interpreters.

“Even where there are interpreters, the phonetics and semantics are difficult to grasp,” she added.

Mrs Pomeyie said that while the PWDs commended government for the GPRS II Initiative which has a major focus on human resource development, it should expand opportunities such as the provision of incentives and enhancement of training for teachers in special schools, text books and physical infrastructure and modernization of formal education for PWDs in both mainstream and special schools.

She urged the government and development organisations to develop information sharing mechanisms for the visually impaired and deaf by providing brail versions and sign interpretations of important information for them to access.

"Interpreters should be provided at various social service points such as hospitals banks courts etc," she stressed.

She expressed regret about the non-payment of the five per cent of the District Assembly Common Fund to PWDs for their self-development as recommended by government.

In cases where it is paid, the assemblies do not pay the five per cent of the total amount received, she noted and urged the government to operationalise the draft modalities development by the Ghana Federation of the Disadvantaged on how PWDs can access their share of the DACF.

She commended government for facilitating the passage of the disability law and urged it to expedite action on the implementation pf the law by the various agencies, government department and bodies.

The Chief Executive of the SEND Foundation West Africa, Siapha Kamara, observed that none of the infrastructure, especially school buildings built with HIPC funds is friendly to people with disabilities and therefore urged the government to take into consideration those with disabilities whenever putting up any infrastructure.