STAKEHOLDERS DOLE OUT N24MILLON FOR PURCHASE OF WHEELCHAIRS AND TALKING DICTIONARIES FOR PLWD…AS STAKEHOLDERS HARP ON PLWD-FRIENDLY PROJECTS
As part of efforts to mitigate the challenges faced by People With Disabilities(PWDs), the Universal Basic Education Commission( UBEC); Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board(JAMB) and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) have doled out the sum of N24millon for the purchase of wheelchairs and Talking Dictionaries for people with disabilities.
Out of the amount, N12million would be used to procure 120 wheelchairs to be distributed to only registered students with each geopolitical zone getting 20 wheelchairs, while N12millon naira would be used for the acquisition of Talking Dictionaries.
A Talking Dictionary is a speech-enabled encyclopedic dictionary that can be used with or without a screen reader. The dictionary contains over 250,000 words, including historical figures, slangs and jargons designed with built-in speech option, the program is perfectly suited for the needs of the visually impaired computer users.
The dictionary has enormous benefits as it provides a broader vocabulary, understand pronunciation, as well as enhance the learning of correct spelling of words, and reading comprehension. It also helps to analyze different meanings of unknown words with examples.The pledges were made when the Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede called the attention of stakeholders to the need to assist
The Executive Secretary of TETFund, Arch. Sunny Echono, like his colleagues, the Executive Secretary, Universal Basic Education Commission, Dr Hamid Bobboyi and the Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede made this pledge at the first National Conference on Equal Opportunity of Access to Higher Education in Nigeria, held in Abuja recently.Arch. Echono said TETFund would do all within its purview to enhance the delivery of quality education to PLWD. He condemned all forms of discrimination for PWDs attributing it to ignorance, orientation and upbringing.”Sometimes many of us do it out of purpose, ignorance or due to inadequate upbringing but the issue of equity, fairness, and inclusiveness in education has gained global attention and no economy can grow and no society can be stable or egalitarian if all actors that steer that economy are not fully mobilised or equipped and encouraged to contribute their quota to the collective good and ensuring shared posterity for all,” he said. He commended Prof.Oloyede and his management team for the initiative of creating a platform for all stakeholders to understand the need for equity which is aimed at making life easier for the PWDs. Meanwhile stakeholders at the just-concluded National Conference on Equal Opportunity of Access to Higher Education in Nigeria has urged TETFund to attach strict conditions to awards/funds given to institutions for promoting the welfare of PWDs to ensure that such funds are utilised for the specific purposes they are meant for. In addition, the stakeholders also want TETFund while extending grants to tertiary institutions, to include clauses that would guarantee increased access to higher education to people with disabilities while also considering special funds for research into the production of assistive devices.
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