PWD- The Lagos State Chapter of the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD), the umbrella body for all Persons with Disabilities and their various associations, wishes to congratulate Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu for his re-election for a second term in office.
The re-election, we believe will enable the Governor to continue his good work of delivering the dividends of democracy to Lagosian.
We use this opportunity to remind the Governor of his promises to the people especially to members of the disability community, being a compassionate leader, it is expected that he would put in all efforts to ameliorate the plights of persons with disabilities in the state.
With regards to key sectors, our demands are;
EDUCATION: To make education more inclusive and accessible to PWDs, the State Government should—
· Review and strengthen the Inclusive Education Policy with a 5-ear implementation plan that will receive an annual cash-backed budget.
· A distinct Directorate for Special and Inclusive Education is established under the Ministry of Education to provide the necessary professional and institutional support to the delivery of qualitative, functional, and inclusive education to children and learners with disabilities at primary, secondary, and tertiary levels respectively.
· All 49 public inclusive primary and secondary schools should be equipped with relevant assistive learning aids and provided with special teachers, caregivers and other relevant specialists.
· All 49 inclusive schools be provided with functional buses to support mobility for pupils and learners.
· Some of the inclusive schools be provided with boarding house facilities to ease learning for pupils and learners.
· Special Allowances for special teachers be implemented in order to motivate them.
HEALTH: The government needs to put in place a disability-Inclusive Health Framework in line with the SPL. This should—
· Detail modalities for implementing the “free health” provisions of the SPL for PWDs.
· The Lagos State Health Insurance Program and other primary health care delivery services be reviewed to mainstream the specific health needs of the various disability types.
· All public health facilities should establish disability support desks/units and equip same with sign language interpreters, social workers, therapists, etc.
EMPLOYMENT, ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT, AND SOCIAL PROTECTION: The State Government should demonstrate a real and sustained commitment to a more holistic and systemic approach to the socio-economic empowerment of PWDs. This should be done through—
· Guidelines for Disability-Inclusive employment and economic empowerment for PWDs should be developed.
· Guidelines for the delivery of disability-inclusive social protection should be developed.
· The full and transparent implementation of the Disability Trust Fund as provided for in the SPL with full consultation and involvement of legitimate organizations of persons with disabilities in Lagos State.
· Full compliance by all MDAs with the 1% quota reservation of employment slots for qualified PWDs during recruitment exercises in the State.
· All social investment programs, social protection programs, and various economic empowerment programs be reviewed to specifically capture and provide for “disability costs”, and mainstream specific abilities, interests, and needs of various disability types.
· Government procurements, especially those which target small and medium-scale businesses should provide for specific quotas set aside for PWDs.
TRANSPORTATION: Mobility remains a major challenge for PWDs in a cosmopolitan state like Lagos. The state government still needs to do more to make public transportation more accessible for PWDs—
· Guidelines on accessible transport services for PwDs should be produced and disseminated to all operators of public transportation services.
· All public transportation infrastructure across the 3 modes (rail, road, and water) should be made accessible to PWDs.
· Accessible bus and train services should be offered free of charge to PWDs.
· Public transportation personnel should be trained to provide support to PWDs.
ACCESS TO PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE: Since the making of the SPL, there are yet to be documented accessibility standards to guide the provision of accessible public infrastructure in the State. The Government is therefore requested to—
· Develop Accessibility Standards to guarantee universal access to public infrastructure.
· Conduct accessibility audits of major public infrastructure and spaces to identify accessibility needs and requirements.
· Put in place a task force to ensure compliance with all accessibility standards in all public infrastructures and spaces.
We shall be happy if our requests are looked into starting with paying more attention to the needs of the disability community in Lagos State. The Governor must ensure that his administration moves closer to the people because we deserve more.
