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{
    "id": 813954,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/813954/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 241,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Dr.) Zani",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13119,
        "legal_name": "Agnes Zani",
        "slug": "agnes-zani"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, for allowing me to contribute to this Motion on the registration of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs). This has been a big problem for a long time. The big question begins with the spread of the various sorts of disabilities. Some disabilities are clear and easy to see, while others are not because they border on certain conditions that may not be visible. For example, if we talk about people who are altruistic or who tend towards schizophrenia, it becomes very difficult to pinpoint. We also know that there are many families which hide children living with disabilities instead of looking for formalities and processes to ensure that the children are helped. First, we should not just be talking about the registration of PWDs, but we should come up with a clear classification of the various sorts of disabilities. We should ask ourselves whether it is possible, at any one level, to identify the specific schools or mainstream industries that will be helpful for a particular child. There are schools that deal with children with disabilities, but which struggle to ensure that they have been mainstreamed, maybe in terms of education or even by engaging them in various social activities. The whole nexus of getting into that point actually begins with a form of registration for the PWDs. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, even though the National Council for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) was established through an Act of 2002, it has not been able to satisfactorily move towards the registration of PWDs. I suspect that this is because our social, environmental and cultural awareness of the productivity of PWDs is not intact. There has not really been enough education and recognition in this area. Nowadays, when we have the Olympics, we have the Paralympics games which are for the PWDs. Consequently, we have seen PWD winning medals by riding bicycles or engaging in other games. However, most of this happens more in the west than it in developing countries. A feeling of acceptance begins there because these people should be looked at as functional and productive members of the society. For this to happen, that person needs to be given chance to do that. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, sometimes resources targeting members of the PWDs are given. However, without an appropriate registration process, it becomes very difficult to identify who they are, where they are, what they are doing and how they can be helped. Yesterday, in this House, we debated the County Statistics Bill, 2018. Part of that Bill clearly stated that we need to have the respective county statistics offices to have statistics about the various counties. One important statistic that we should have in these offices is the statistics of PWDs. We should know the nature of disabilities and how The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}