Policies for helping the disabled
Sunday, 16 September 2007
NEARLY 17 per cent of the population in Bangladesh remain handicapped in different ways, physically, in performing their life related and occupational tasks. The huge number of disabled persons in the population shows that more needs to be done than extending mere lip service to mitigate their woes . As it is, most of them are compelled to lead a life of complete dependence on family members. Institutional care for the disabled is very limited or insignificant . In affluent families, disability is not so much of a problem for the obvious reasons. But physically handicapped persons are a great burden on the poor families. The disabled poor should be more and more brought under institutional care with the state, private charities and non-governmental organisations playing a greater role in this respect.
The care for the disabled can take the form of sheltering and feeding them. No less a contribution would be training them up in different skills for doing jobs which they would be able to do notwithstanding their disabilities and make a living for themselves. This is very possible as the experiences in many countries have shown. Disabled people there have been discharging their duties productively in different sectors of the economy with selective training, encouragement and supports from governmental and social organisations. They are helping to pay for their needs or proving to be more as social assets than liabilities.
Policies in Bangladesh should necessarily be guided by such strategies of integrating disabled people with the mainstream population by training them up so that they can work in different ways -- notwithstanding their physical limitations -- and lead productive and happier lives. Specially, they can be trained for different services in the information technology (IT) sector. Indeed, given proper social or governmental supports, disability may not be so much of a problem for a disabled individual in his or her journey through life with productivity and bearable dependence.
Farzana Begum
Purana Paltan, Dhaka
The care for the disabled can take the form of sheltering and feeding them. No less a contribution would be training them up in different skills for doing jobs which they would be able to do notwithstanding their disabilities and make a living for themselves. This is very possible as the experiences in many countries have shown. Disabled people there have been discharging their duties productively in different sectors of the economy with selective training, encouragement and supports from governmental and social organisations. They are helping to pay for their needs or proving to be more as social assets than liabilities.
Policies in Bangladesh should necessarily be guided by such strategies of integrating disabled people with the mainstream population by training them up so that they can work in different ways -- notwithstanding their physical limitations -- and lead productive and happier lives. Specially, they can be trained for different services in the information technology (IT) sector. Indeed, given proper social or governmental supports, disability may not be so much of a problem for a disabled individual in his or her journey through life with productivity and bearable dependence.
Farzana Begum
Purana Paltan, Dhaka