Fifty- three Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) in the Ada West District of the Greater Accra Region have benefited from the second tranche of the three per cent of the disabilities common fund from the Ada West District Assembly at Sege.

Out of the number, 11 applied for economic and business support, 30 applied for equipment support, six applied for education support and another six applied for health and assistive devices.

The applicants received deep freezers, fufu pounding machines, knitting machines, popcorn machines, plastic chairs, hairdryers and rollers, mattresses, bags of charcoal, tarpaulin and physical cash, among other items.

The Ada West District Chief Executive (DCE), Jerry John Foreigner Modjifa Tanihu Mills-Nkrumah, stated that the disbursement of the items to the Ada West PWDs marked yet another step in the district assembly’s journey towards building a society where no one was left behind, where every individual, regardless of physical ability, was given the opportunity to live with dignity, purpose and hope in life.

Systemic barriers

“As a district assembly, we recognise that disability is not inability. PWDs possess immense potential, talents and capabilities that can contribute meaningfully to the development of our district and the nation as a whole.

However, we also acknowledge that systemic barriers such as social, economic and environmental barriers often limit these opportunities,” the DCE added. 

The DCE said, as a district, they remained committed to improving access to education, health care and employment opportunities for persons with disabilities, and the assembly would continue to advocate inclusive policies and invest in programmes that promote equality and empowerment.

The Head of Unit of the Social Welfare Department, Patience Atanga, who represented the Director of Social Welfare and Community Development, Philip Dotse, asked the recipients to take note of the training they had received before the disbursement to ensure they put the items to good use as they had applied for.