PWDs welcome new policy document on disbursement of disability fund

Persons Living with Disabilities (PWDs) in the Ahafo Region have welcomed the new policy guideline for the management and disbursement of their share of the District Assembly Common Fund.

They lauded the leadership of the Ghana Federation of Disability Organization (GFD) and its partners for the inputs in the policy, which would improve the socio-economic livelihoods of PWDs.

The PWDs gave the commendation at a sensitization forum on the revised document aimed to guide the management and disbursement of the disability fund held at Goaso, the regional capital.

It was organised by the Ghana Somubi Dwumadie, a disability focused non-governmental organization with funding support from the United Kingdom Aid.

The forum also distributed a 2022 evidence-based review reportof the District Assembly Common Fund to the PWDs.

It was to empower them to hold management of the disability fund accountable and ensure adherence to the implementation of the new policy document.

Mrs Vivian Sarpomaa Fiscian, the Leadership and Governance Advisor, Ghana Somubi Dwumadie, said evidence showed many Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) had failed to comply with the guidelines for the disbursement of the disability fund.

“The ultimate goal of the fund is to reduce poverty and severe economic hardship among the PWDs”, she said, hence the nationwidesensitization to empower the PWDs to hold management of the fund accountable.

Mrs Fiscian said similar fora had already been held in nine regions, hoping to cover all the 16 regions by the end of the year.

Mr Matthew Anor Kudom, the President of the Ghana Federation of Persons with Disabilities (GFPD), said the new policy document was put in place through collaborative efforts of state and non-state institutions with funding from the UK Aid and technical assistance from the Ghana Somubi Dwumadie.

They include the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, the Ministry of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development (MLGRD), Office of the Head of Local Government Service (OHLGS) and other private partners.

Mr Kudom lauded the unparalleled contributions of the National Council on Persons with Disability (NCPD) and the GFD, saying the new policy document would help to alleviate the plight of the PWDs.

He, therefore, called on parliament to fast-track the approval of the new guideline for its onward implementation in 2023.