It’s a wakeup call’, NHRC charges stakeholders on education to children with disabilities

The Executive Secretary of NHRC, Dr Tony Ojukwu gave the charge while speaking at a workshop in Abuja on Thursday.

The workshop with the theme, ‘Strengthening National Mechanism To Promote Access To Education of Children with Disabilities’, is aimed at addressing neglected policy contained in the education rights of children with disabilities.

Dr. Ojukwu lamented that lack of access to education by children with disabilities has become a developmental issue in every part of the world.

He said according to Unicef, 99 percent of children with disabilities are out of school, and 90 percent may never get access to basic education.

While noting that education is the major area of focus of the Commission, including disabilities, the Executive Secretary said, “This is quite disturbing and challenging, therefore it’s a wakeup call for all institutions making and saddled with the responsibilities of providing basic education”.

According to him, regardless of policies being put in place for people with disabilities, many may not be able to access their educational rights if nothing is done, saying the right to education is right for every child.

Dr. Ojukwu urged the government to as a matter of urgency address the factors preventing children with disabilities from accessing education in Nigeria.

“Therefore we call on the government to address the various challenges facing access to children with disabilities, such as lack of specialized teachers, lack of awareness of the right of education of children with disabilities”, he added.

In his remarks, the convener of the workshop, Mrs. Ifeoma Lillian Nwankama stressed the importance of the education of children with disabilities in the society.

Projecting the objective of the workshop, Mrs. Nwakama, who is a retired Director of NHRC, said the workshop is an avenue for stakeholders to discuss the unimplemented policies guiding the rights of children with disabilities to accessing a quality education.

“This workshop is going to highlight the functions of the disability act in the area of promoting access to education for children, and to propose actions to be taken to strengthen the provisions”, she said.

In his goodwill message, Mr. Kehinde Ogunbiyitan, National Commission for Persons With Disabilities (NCPWD) said the workshop is a testament of a collective commitment to see that every child living with disabilities gets the opportunity to unlock their God given potentials through education.

He emphasized that children with disabilities are not asking for special favors but equal rights to basic education, as well as empowering
families and communities to cater for their needs.

Also speaking, Prof. Magdalyne Duran, Executive Director, Gender Advocacy for Justice Initiative, said gender special needs should be addressed and given strict consideration, advocating that necessary modalities be put in place for girls living with disabilities.

The ED, who doubles as Dean, Faculty of Law, Bingham University, proposed that girl gender with disability be given scholarships for an equitable access to education in Nigeria.