THE Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Zainab Maina, has said that the ministry would adopt the concept of public private partnership in its dealings on matters involving the disabled in the society.
During the Disability Awareness Week (DAW), which ended Friday at Chevron Recreation Centre, Lagos with the theme, "An all Inclusive Nigeria Is possible," Hajiya Zainab said that government cannot do alone the job of ensuring that the disabled are well catered for in the society, because of the enormous resources involved.
"Considering the finances needed for training and empowering of 100 persons in the six-geo political zones in the country, the ministry is seeking to have collaborations with private organisations," she said.
The Minister explained that the collaborations should help minimise the stigma attached to the disabled. "It is my belief that this purposeful collaboration with donor agencies, non-governmental organisations will go a long way towards redressing the orthodox and negative belief about disabilities in our midst," she noted.
The Executive Director, Centre for Citizens with Disabilities, Mr. David Anyaele explained that the focus of this year's DAW was to integrate the citizens with disabilities into the society with little or no discrimination.
According to him, the objectives of this year's event include increasing public Knowledge on disability issues in order to foster their integration into our society on a non-discriminatory basis; mobilising support for their dignity, rights and well-being and that of their families; and empowering them to overcome the challenge of living with disability in the society.
