Implement five per cent PWDs employment, group urges FG

The Nigeria Association of the Blind has called on the Federal Government to implement the employment of five per cent of persons with disabilities in public institutions.

The association also urged ministries, departments, and agencies at all levels to ensure inclusiveness and inclusivity of their programmes and policies.

The association in a press statement signed by its chairman, the Federal Capital Territory chapter, Agada Aguda, and made available to our correspondent on Friday, said PWDs were being denied equal opportunity to earn a living.

The statement read in part, “Between September 2020 and August 2021, the Nigeria Association of the Blind, the FCT chapter, embarked on the execution of a project titled: ‘Accessibility of formal employment to Persons with Disabilities in the FCT’. The project, which featured persons with other types of disabilities, was supported by an international non-governmental organisation, the Disability Rights Fund.

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“The project was aimed at promoting the implementation of the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018 (the Disability rights Act), particularly section 29 of the Act which mandates all employers of labour in public institutions to have at least five per cent of persons with disabilities in their employment. During the execution of the project, the association carried advocacy to four ministries, departments and agencies of both the federal government and the FCT. The organisations include the Federal Capital Territory Administration, the Federal Civil Service Commission, the National Directorate of Employment and the FCT Vocational and Training Institute.

“These agencies pledged their commitments to ensuring disability components in their policies and programmes. While the FCSC (an agency of the federal government saddled with the recruitment of labour force for the government) informed the association at the material time of the existence of the federal government embargo on employment, and that it could do little or nothing until and unless the embargo was lifted, other organisations (the NDE, the FCT Vocational and Training Institute and the FCTA) promised inclusivity in their policies and programmes.

“Shortly after the close of the project, the NDE requested the association to submit 74 names of persons with disabilities for a three-month training with stipends. The association selected two persons from each state of the federation, including the FCT, and across disability clusters. The training was extended by another three months; hence the programme ran for a total of six months.

“As part of the efforts of the association to continuously sustain the campaign, it decided to carry out follow-up visits on the responsible agencies and sought the approval of its sponsors. The association wrote the agencies requesting courtesy visits. Sadly, of the four agencies, only the FCSC responded to its letter stating that there was no need for the follow-up visit since the federal government had yet to lift the embargo on employment.

“We call on ministries, departments and agencies at all levels of government to, as a matter of priority, ensure inclusiveness and inclusivity of their programmes and policies. The PWDs are still being denied equal opportunity to earn a living. The last recruitment exercise of the Federal Road Safety Corps was a testimony to the unfortunate reality when the commission blatantly put out in the notice of call for application that persons with disabilities were ineligible to apply.

“At the federal level, we call on the Secretary to the Government of the Federation to urgently intervene to put a stop to the madness – eradication of non-inclusionary recruitment policies. We urge him to use his good office to ensure the implementation of the five per cent quota for persons with disabilities in all public institutions, the embargo on employment having been lifted.”