Disability is not Inability

:: THE BLIND AND VISUALLY IMPAIRED HOLD AN INTERNATIONAL INCLUSION CONFERENCE IN NAIROBI:

We are here! We are able! Give us equal opportunities in Society!
This was the clarion call from blind and visually impaired persons from 40 different nationalities across Africa who are holding discussions in Nairobi on how to assert their position in society.

About 350 delegates are attending the Africa Blindness Forum believed to be the largest of its kind in recent history. The theme of the conference is social inclusion and the topics include Education, training, employment and Sports.

Employment for the blind and those with visual problems dominated yesterday’s discussions, the second day..

According to Mr. Patrick Haga, an official of the Kenya Union of the Blind (KUB), teaching is the most favourable career choice for the blind and the visually impaired in Kenya.

Africa Blindness forum conference theme is social inclusion. Some of the topics covered in the forum include Education, training, employment and Sports. They want more inclusion in other areas of society apart from more opportunites as say teachers. The Government should employ more teachers who are blind as an measure of inclusion. There are many blind qualified people who though visually impaired can be vary good teachers....

There are about 250,000 visually impaired people in Kenya according to statistics. More that 90 per cent of those who have received post-secondary education are teachers, says Mr. Haga.

Only a few are in tertiary institutions. “Even those who may not be directly engaged as teachers currently probably worked in the education sector in one way or another before diversifying,” Said the former High school teacher, currently a curriculum developer as Kenya Institute of Education.

The legal profession is the second choice, but only a few have made it to the top. These include Josephine Sinyo who is a state counsel and Lawrence Mute, a commissioner at the Kenya Human Rights Commission.

Henry Wanyoike is one of the many sportsmen and women with visual-impairment who have made it in sports. there are many budding sportspersosn with various disabilities. What is required is that an academy be built to help nature young athletes with visual impairment...

”The belief has always been the blind can only be teachers” says Mr. Haga.

But gauging by the setting and presentations in the Nairobi held conference many new opportunities are up for the taking. The conference easy many delegates using laptop computers and communicating through various interfaces as provided by ICT.

This shows that the potential of many more visually impaired people would be significantly opened by an ICT-based education approach. Other Visually impaired persons who have made it outside education include Dr. Sam Tororei, a consultant with RATN who is also a leading researcher in disability HIV/AIDS.

Source: Daily Nation 17th May 2007 article by Caroline Wafula with additional reporting by disabilitykenya.


:: THE BLIND AND VISUALLY IMPAIRED INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON INCLUSIVE EDUCATION

:: LESSONS IN WHAT ADJUSTMENTS PWDS NEED TOWARDS INCLUSION: