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Mr Kwamena Dadzie-Dennis (left) addressing the media. On his left is Mrs Lilian Bruce-Lyle and Mr Divine Ayidzoe of the National Council of Persons with Disability
Mr Kwamena Dadzie-Dennis (left) addressing the media. On his left is Mrs Lilian Bruce-Lyle and Mr Divine Ayidzoe of the National Council of Persons with Disability

Council addresses concerns of persons with disability

The National Council on Persons with Disability (NCPWD) has developed an initiative to address the concerns of persons with disability (PWDs), with regard to ensuring easy access to public facilities.

Known as the Ghana Standard on Accessibility Designs (GSAD), the GSAD will guide developers, designers and other people involved in the processes of buildings to incorporate the accessibility principle in all stages of their building projects.

It will also help to create awareness of accessibility standards and the need to remove all barriers in the design and built environment.

At a media encounter during the launch of the initiative in Accra last Thursday, the acting Executive Secretary of the NCPWD, Mr Kwamena Dadzie-Dennis, described the GSAD as timely, considering the fact that most public facilities had failed to make their buildings accessible to PWDs.

Collaborators

It was funded by the Open Society Initiative of West Africa (OSIWA) in collaboration with the Ghana Federation of Disability Organisation (GFD), Ghana Blind Union (GBU), Ghana Society for the Physically Disabled, and the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA). 

According to Mr Dadzie-Dennis, “the buildings in most public institutions in the country lack lifts that can enable easy movement for the disabled, meanwhile, sections of the Persons Disability Act (Act 715, 2006) require that buildings, roads, indoor and outdoor facilities, in workplaces are to be made accessible to persons with disability.”

A member of the Disability Council, Mrs Lilian Bruce Lyle, said the media had a vital role to play to create awareness of the issues confronting PWDs.

She encouraged the various media houses to assist them by informing the public about some of the challenges confronting them so as to allow them move freely like all other citizens.

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