"Hand in Hand" with children on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities in Azerbaijan

More than 200 children with disabilities participated in an observance of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities today in Ganja. The International Day of Persons with Disabilities (December 3), an annual international observance promoted by the United Nations (UN) since 1992, aims to promote an understanding of disability issues and mobilize support for the dignity, rights and well-being of persons with disabilities, and their inclusion in every aspect of society.

The Consolidated Action for Sustained Change (CASC) program funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) joined the Ganja city Administration, the State Committee on Family, Women and Children Issues, the Child Protection Department under the Ministry of Education and United Aid for Azerbaijan (UAFA) to organize the event.

The goal of the event was to promote better understanding of disability issues with a focus on the rights of persons with disabilities and gains to be derived from the integration of persons with disabilities in every aspect of the political, social, economic and cultural life of their communities. The audience was provided with a program that combined both interaction and entertainment, as well as educated the community on issues surrounding people with disabilities. These issues include the importance of effective participation of persons with disabilities in society, their capacity building, work potential and employment issues.

The USAID-funded CASC program implemented by Save the Children (SC) is designed to promote equal employment opportunities for people with a disability. This program was started subsequent to the U.S. President Obama's signing the U.N. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on July 30, 2009.

USAID's policy on disability seeks to avoid discrimination against people with disabilities in programs that USAID funds and to stimulate the engagement of host country counterparts, governments, implementing organizations and other donors in promoting a climate of nondiscrimination against and equal opportunity for people with disabilities.


/Today.Az/