SOUTHERN AFRICA FEDERATION OF THE DISABLED (SAFOD)

 

 

 

 

  

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Text Box: Make Noise for Inclusiveness of MDGs! Disabled People’s Regional Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Meeting agreed upon concerted Action Communities all over the world are urged to make noise on the 18th of September 2010 at 12 Noon by beating drums and any other way which will attract the attention of authorities in every country in the world. This was a resolution made at a Millennium Development Goals Regional Meeting for Disabled People’s Organizations on MDGs and Disability in Southern Africa. The meeting was held in Zimbabwe’s capital Harare on 18 - 19 March 2010. It was attended by representatives of People with Disabilities from five South African countries i.e. South Africa, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The reunion was organized by the United Nations Millennium Campaign (UNMC) Africa Office and the Ecumenical Disability Advocates Network (EDAN) based in Kenya. The United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon recently called on world leaders to attend a summit in New York from the 20th to the 22nd September 2010 to boost progress towards the MDGs. The eight Millennium Development Goals range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education. All this should be done by the target date of 2015. The MDGs form a blueprint agreed to by all the world’s leading development institutions. They have galvanized unprecedented efforts to meet the needs of the worlds poorest. The MDGs are drawn from the actions and targets contained in the Millennium Declaration that was adopted by 189 nations and signed by 147 heads of state and governments during the Millennium Summit in September 2000. The participants of the regional meeting in Harare felt that the upcoming summit in New York is a very good opportunity for people with disabilities to attract attention of the world leaders as they prepare to attend it in September. Making noise is a peaceful way of demonstrating against non-inclusion of disabled people in the MDGs.  Disability issues continue to be given such a low priority that even the United Nations Millennium Development Goals have failed to accommodate them in the specific targeted areas of concern. Persons with disabilities are the poorest of the poor and any poverty alleviation programme cannot be effective when persons with disabilities are left out. Other resolutions agreed upon at the meeting include vigorous campaigns to make sure that People with disabilities are included in each government delegation attending the September summit. If this is achieved it will be a milestone success as disabled people will have the greatest opportunity to be visible at the summit and have their voices clearly heard. International and regional bodies such as the United Nations and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) should have a shared vision on the improvement of the lives of Persons with disabilities. Delegates to this meeting also agreed that the UN should ensure that there is a consultative process to have self-representation of disabled people in these bodies. This arrangement will ensure that their views are captured at all events discussingdevelopmental programmes including the MDGs summit. Another strategy agreed upon was to introduce a programme on “Kick Out Poverty Campaign” where sport such as soccer can be targeted to play a role in the campaign towards recognizing disability rights. Sport is universally being used to unite different nations and as a tool for awareness campaigns. It was also agreed that governments should be urged to assist disabled children to go to school as these are also the future leaders of various institutions as well as Disabled People’s Organizations. However, DPOs should ensure that there is a monitoring and evaluation mechanism in each government to make sure issues of disability are not ignored or left out in decision making and implementation processes. By Robert Mkozho, SAFOD – Regional Programmes Officer  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SAFOD
PO Box 2247
19, Lobengula Street
Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
Tel +263 9 69356
Fax +263 9 62944
mailto:safod@netconnect.co.zw info@safod.org

 

 

African Decade (2010 -2019)

 

 

Second African Decade of Persons with Disabilities declared for the period 2010 to 2019

 

As from 22 June 2011 the offices of the Secretariat of the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities are no longer at 8 Burg Street, Pinnacle Building, 10th Floor, Cape Town, South Africa.  They have relocated to new offices.

The new street location of the Secretariat’s Offices is:

Block 5GF03

Sanwood Office Park

Text Box: Kudakwashe Dube            Chief Executive Officer         Cell:: +27(0)798720325                  Tel:+27(0)798720325          Fax +27(0) 866896242           akdube@africandecade.co.za        www.africandecade.org.za     Text Box: 379 Queens Crescent

Lynwood

Pretoria, 0081

South Africa

 

Mr Bheki Jele,

Executive Support Officer

Cell: +27788781922

bheki@africandecade.co.za

 

MrThomas Ong’olo

     Programme Manager

Ongolo@africandecade.co.za

Cell: +27727982874

 

     Miss Nanou Kambaji,

     Administration and

     Finance Administrator

Cell: +27721484877

nanou@africandecade.co.za

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                

                                                         

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SAFOD - A Promising Future for People with Disability

 

 

      
 

 

Vision

"A society new society where all people, including disabled people, women and workers, men and children, are treated with dignity, respect and on the basis of equality."

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Mission

"To strengthen Disabled People's Organisations in SAFOD member countries through training, research, coordination, information sharing, promotion of human rights and adoption of appropriate strategies for stimulating people with disabilities to enhance their economic, political and social development"

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Core Values

  • Participatory

  • Transparency

  • Accountability

  • Commitment

  • Gender Sensitivity

  • Empowerment
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

Copyright © 2010 [Southern Africa Federation of the Disabled]

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