disABILITY FOCUS

Part II provides for the general administration and implementation of the Bill when enacted. It gives powers to the Minister to set up committees, and establishes the Malawi Council for Disability Affairs (MACODA) also known as “the Agency”.   The Agency will be an arm of the Government and will be responsible for the promotion of the equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities, advise the Minister on all matters affecting persons with disabilities, register persons with disabilities and regulate relevant organizations. Article 4 reads: The Minister shall be responsible for (a) coordinating policy formulation and review; (b) implementation, monitoring and evaluation of programmes; (c) promoting disability mainstreaming in all sectors; (d) mobilizing resources from both internal and external sources for policy development and implementation; (e) strengthening the capacity of organizations of and for persons with disabilities in order to enhance advocacy to facili

Introduction Besides a list of definitions, Part I of the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities Bill also contains preliminary provisions on general principles to be used during implementation, as follows. Basic Principle 1   “The Government shall adopt policies and legislation on equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities whose aim shall be to promote and protect the rights of persons with disabilities and to fully include them in all aspects of life to enhance their dignity and well-being so that they have essentials of life.” Basically, what we mean by this principle is that the enactment of the Disability Bill shall be a significant boost towards the empowerment of persons with disabilities in the country and a milestone in the history of disability rights in the country.  The law shall recognise the need for persons with disabilities to be involved in developing national programmes, projects and services. It shall promote the availabi

This week, we continue looking at some of the key definitions of certain terms used in the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities Bill, as follows: ·          Government – refers to all the three branches: The Executive, Legislature and Judiciary whose functions are enshrined in this Bill respectively. ·          Impairment – means any loss or limitations of psychological, physiological or anatomical structure or function. ·          Institution – means land, buildings or other premises in which an organization carries on work for the empowerment of persons with disabilities, and includes premises where persons with disabilities are supported by such organization. ·          Inclusive Education – refers to the process of addressing and responding to the diversity of needs of all learners through increasing participation in learning, cultures and communities and reducing exclusion within and from education.   It involves changes and modifications in

Part I contains preliminary provisions such as definitions of certain terms used in the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities Bill, and outlines general principles to be used during implementation. We start by looking at some of the key definitions used in the Bill as follows: ·          Accessibility – this word is understood as the design of products, environments, programmes and services to be usable by all people to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation and specialized design. Universal Design shall not exclude assistive devices for particular groups of persons with disabilities where this is needed. ·          Authorized officer – means a medical practitioner, rehabilitation/disability programme officer, social worker, or any other person authorized by the Minister for the purposes of this Bill. ·          Agency – refers to Malawi Council for Disability Affairs (MACODA) established by the MACODA Act. ·          Auxilia