UE/R Stakeholders Workshop to Influence Disbursement of DACF to PWDs

A cross section of participants at the workshop

A stakeholder’s workshop on facilitating women living with Disabilities/Albinism access to economic opportunities has been organized by the Seed for Economic Empowerment of the Vulnerable (SEEV-Ghana) in the Upper East Region. 

SEEV-Ghana’s aim is to contribute to positive change based on mutual interest and values. 

They support children, women groups, persons with Disabilities (PWDs), their associations/networks and community leaders to work in partnership with duty bearers on the development of a more inclusive, open and unwavering societies. 

Persons with Disabilities PWDs who constitute majority of the beneficiaries of SEEV-Ghana in the Upper East Region so not fully benefit from the 3 percent District Assemblies Common Fund allocations to PWDs. A situation where PWDs suffer all forms of discrimination, exclusion in addition to District Assembly restricting support for PWDs, further disempowers them economically.

 It was against this backdrop that SEEV-Ghana, with funding and technical support from the Business Sector Advocacy Challenge (BUSAC) Fund and its donors Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA), United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the European Union currently undertaking an advocacy action to influence Bolgatanga Municipal and Bongo District Assembly to facilitate access to economic opportunities for Women Living with Disabilities/Albinism in the communities. 

Vincent Subby BUSAC Fund Monitor and Robert Nintand Programmes Manager SEEV-Ghana

Speaking to Radio Ghana, the Programmes Manager Robert Nintang, indicated that, the workshop intended to create a platform to deliberate on findings of a research conducted in the Bolgatanga Municipality and Bongo District as part of the advocacy action and step that could be taken to resolve the issue. 

He added, with the provision of skills and established social facilities, it will bring enormous economic benefits to PWDs in the area and also increase income generating capacities to members of PWDS, create employment opportunities which will lead to economic independence and self reliance. 

The BUSAC Fund monitor Vincent Subby stated that, SEEV-Ghana has applied and met the criteria for funding from BUSAC. Therefore BUSAC will monitor every activity to ensure that their choice of fighting for PWDs to give some leverage and sustainability in the disbursement of the District Assembly is achieved. 

SEEV-Ghana came in to being as a result of peer discussion amongst development students and the constant contact with women and children in distressed communities in the Upper East Region and Ghana as a whole.