Opportunity Training Centre with Support from Engineers without Borders (EWB/OTC) Denmark has on 5th November, 2022 ended a week-long massive community outreach in three Chiefdoms – Small Bo, Dama and Nongowa in the Kenema District.
The outreach was based on’ Rights to livelihood and Inclusion with unproved access to education and social resources for youths living with disabilities or impairments.
The proprietor and executive director of OTC Ekundyor Scotland said over five hundred community leaders and other stakeholders in over forty villages benefited from the engagement, pointing out that the community engagement took place at Giema-Dama chiefdom, Blama town, small Bo chiefdom and at Largo, Kona Kpindibu section in the Nongowa chiefdoms respectively.
He revealed that OTC was formed by group of polio survivors during the war, adding, it started as a training centre for polio survivors in Kenema District with the aim of supporting polios survivors to move away from begging on the streets thereby coming into the centre to learn livelihood skills that will enhance them to earn income for their survival in a dignified manner.
The centre has shifted its focus from targeting polios survivors to include all other types of disabilities and some able youths to access skills training in various sectors.
Mr Scotland disclosed that the organisation’s operations has been broadly classified into two theoretic areas which are advocacy for an inclusive society and empowerment of polio to live a dignified life thrill contributing to nation building.
He disclosed that the training institution is accredited by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST) (now Ministry of Technical and Higher Education (MTHE) which operates as a Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) centre.
He called on the parents, family and community members to support people with disability to acquire education or skills as it is the gate way to improve on their livelihood and access to social resources.
He spoke about the Disability Act of 2011 which calls for equal right to education, health, and accessibility to name but few for all citizens referenced above.
Speaking on the Rights of Persons with Impairment, the National Coordinator of Humanist Watch – Salone Christopher Morie Brima told the gathering that, human rights are laws that govern every citizen of a country including persons with disability.
He explained that Sierra Leone as a member of the United Nations is a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability [UNCRPD] which has been domesticated in an act known as Disability Act of 2011, that made several provisions that will mitigate against discrimination and stigmatisation on persons with disability.
Mr. Brima pointed out that women and children with impairment are mostly sexually and domestically abused, adding that they are most times left out of development programmes especially when it comes to decision making at family, community and national level.
The human rights activist condemns all forms of discriminating act against them, unlawful and inhuman treatment of persons with disability and to accord the level platform for persons with impairment.
Talking on behalf of Dama chiefdom, a former councillor of Ward 023 in Kenema district Bobor Jonjo, who doubles as chairman of the meeting, expressed his profound thanks and appreciation to OTC for the knowledge they have shared on disability.
He encouraged stakeholders and community leaders present to be as an ambassadors in disseminating the messages to their various communities in order to change their negative perception about person with impairment.
He urged the religious leaders to continue preaching to their congregation on the knowledge they have acquired.
The Nursing Supervisor in Dama Chiefdom, Lilley Moiwai, outlined the various causes of disability, adding that, some disability could be natural whilst other are artificial created either through human activities, such as accidents, civil wars, wrong dispensation of drugs, domestic violence including injection of both pregnant and lactating mother’s under taking through medical treatment and during delivery.
She said, to control and prevent the spread of polio and other diseases people need to trust health workers by taking their advices, as medical complications do contribute to most of the disability issues.
The paramount chief representative of Small Bo chiefdom Ishmael Koroma commended OTC for choosing his chiefdom for the outreach describing it as laudable intervention on disability issues.
The chiefdom speaker said, they have allocated land to blind people in Blama town and called on any humanitarian organization to come and help build a structure for them.
The paramount chief Mohamed Dafie Benya has ensure that the community cultivate swamp for rice production so that the food can be with the disabled people.
He called on OTC and their donors to extend similar training center to Small Bo chiefdom for similar purpose.
All community embrace the initiative of OTC and pledged their support by sending their relatives with disabilities to learn trade to change their status.
He called on the stakeholders to develop a community bye-laws that will handle any dissemination of persons with disabilities.
Telling stories from some disables that have gone through OTC and learns skills training that have changed their status in society.
