Yobe, UN agencies distribute tricycle-wheelchairs, kits to PWDs
By Tada Juthan
The Yobe State Government, in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Care International, has distributed 350 tricycle-wheelchairs and 100 dignity kits to people with disabilities (PWDs) in the state.
According to the UN agencies, the distribution initiatives were to ensure persons with disabilities reach their socio-economic potentials in the state.
Presenting the wheelchairs and kits over the weekend in Damaturu, the State Local Organising Committee Chairperson, Fatima Paga, disclosed:
“Today’s (Saturday) event is to distribute the wheelchairs and kits to promote inclusiveness of PWDs and contribute their quota in the development of various communities.”
Additionally, she noted that this will ensure the people with disabilities reach their full potentials in the local economy.
The distribution theme, “Transformative Leadership for Inclusive Development,” was also supported by the UNFPA and other development partners in the country.
Disability Working Group Sector Coordinator, Oghene Tega, also revealed that the UN agencies are able to collect data and other information on PWDs resident in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states.
The Commissioner of Wealth Creation, Empowerment, and Employment Generation (WCEEG), Hon. Aji Bularafa, represented by Director of Planning, Research, and Statistics, Alhaji Sabo, said the state government’s procurement of wheelchairs was to facilitate the movements of people with special needs.
He noted that the distribution exercise could strengthen the resilience of PWDs while conducting business activities to improve their livelihoods in communities.
Chairman of the Yobe State Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JNAPWD), Dr. Usman Bura Gabai, commended the state government and development partners for improving the living conditions of people with disabilities.
in the state.
He, therefore, called on Governor Mai Mala Buni to sign off on the disability bill passed by the State House of Assembly into law.
“This will ensure proper inclusion of persons with special needs in human resource development,” he said.
