By Noah Ocheni, Lokoja
The National Association of Persons With Disabilitieas (NAPWDs) over the weekend demanded the full implementation of the provisions of Kogi State Disability law, and inclusion of disability equity issues in the state.
This includes 32-years development plan to bring about effective disability inclusion policies in the state in line with the United Nations convention on rights of persons with disability (UNCRPD) and the national disability act, domesticated in the state.
The Disability Community in Kogi State, North Central Nigeria, also presented a Charter of Demands to the government of Kogi State, aimed at sustainable disability inclusive budgeting to strengthen the inclusion and full participation of persons with disabilities (PWDs) and their organizations in government planning and budgeting in the state.
The Disability Community in the state under the aegis of Kogi State Chapter of national association of persons with physical Disability (NAPWPD), and the national Secretariat made the public presentation of the ‘Charter of Demands’ to the state over the weekend in Lokoja.
This was contained in a communique after a two-day capacity building workshop for persons with disabilities in Kogi State on the exigencies of CRPD-Compliant budgeting and advocacy supported by the US-Based Disability Rights Fund, highlighted the imperative of budget tracking and understanding of the budget circle towards inclusive budgeting in the state.
“We, the people with disabilities, assembled in Lokoja, from 15th to 16th of January, 2024, present this Charter of Demands on the rights of persons with disabilities to inclusive budgeting and development; developed through a consultative process involving representatives of all clusters and associations of persons with disabilities from across the 21 Local Government Areas of the state.
In the area of education, the group asks the state government to set up Education Assessment and Resource Services (EARS) to cater for peculiarities of learners with disabilities, while it advocates an immediate budgetary commitment of at least 2.5 per cent of GDP towards disability inclusion endeavours in the state.
According to the document, the principle of ‘non-retrogression’ had been applied in articulating the disability demands with a view to preventing “disproportionate and arbitrary cuts in budgetary allocations to disability specific projects in the state.”
Kogi State chairman of NAPWPD, Comrade Hassan Sule Destiny, appealed to Kogi State government to ensure that persons with disabilities benefit maximally from resource allocation and unhindered participation in Kogi State growth and development.
He also called on Kogi State government to increase its disability responsiveness by adding disability inclusion in the annual performance agreements of accounting officers and CAOs in line with the group demands in view of the extra costs faced by persons with disabilities in the state.
The Disability Community in the state called Kogi State government to ensure that the provision of essential services such as education, healthcare, water and sanitation, housing and employment reach people with disabilities in the state.
The national president of NAPWPD, Comrade Ridwanu Abdulllahi in his remarks called on the PWDs stakeholders in the state to constantly engage government officials for policy dialogue on disability inclusion in the state.
The workshop featured focus group discussions, Knowledge on budget advocacy and analysis with the participants drawn from across the disability clusters in the state.
Responding unbehalf of Kogi State government, Acting Executive Secretary of Kogi State Office For Disability Affairs (KOSODA), Mrs. Lydia O. Fadamijo, expressed delight with the disability-inclusivity of the state government, which had led to the passage into law of the Kogi State Disability law 2022.
Mrs Fadamijo added that KOSODA would continue to work hard with relevant agencies and stakeholders to raise awareness in the public sector about necessity of disability inclusion in government business in the state.
