500 persons with visual disability to be trained to live independently

The Orientation and Mobility programme launched by Guyana’s First Lady, Her Excellency, Arya Ali on Tuesday, will see 500 blind and visually impaired persons receiving training to acquire skills and live independently.

DPI spoke with some of them, who believe the initiative will be of tremendous benefit to them. 

Ms. Schemona Sugrim will be employed with the programme to train others in various skills and use of assistive technologies to gain employment.

“It’s a great initiative because persons like myself will be benefitting tremendously from it.  I can say that in times past, I didn’t really have the opportunity that other persons will have, so I feel really good about it.”

Another person to benefit from the programme is Ms. Lata Devie Jagmohan.

“I think it’s very innovative for all the people who put this together and thinking about persons with disabilities, and I think it’s a benefit for a lot of people, especially those who are visually impaired and blind, to develop independent living skills…”

Disability Rights advocate, Mr.  Leroy Phillips said he is happy that young persons living with visual disabilities can have a better future as they can now acquire mobility and orientation skills to make them independent.

“I feel particularly excited, elated, happy, optimistic about the future of those young persons who are blind and visually impaired across the length and breadth of Guyana. For too many years, for too long we’ve heard stories and had to deal with blind and visually impaired persons staying at home, kept at home with no other option but to remain at home because they did not get the chance, the opportunity to acquire mobility and orientation skills,” he said.

Programme Coordinator of the Guyana Council of Organisation for Persons with Disabilities (GCOPD), Mr. Ganesh Singh said the programme will train persons from seven regions across the country.

“We will do this in an informal way using volunteers, mostly persons who are blind and visually impaired…through this programme we aim in the next year to train and provide orientation and mobility services to approximately 500 persons who are blind and visually impaired, across Regions Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven and Ten,” Mr. Singh said.

He noted that 10 persons will gain direct employment through the programme. The persons will be certified as Orientation and Mobility officers by the Board of Industrial Training (BIT) and will use the certificate and skills gained for future employment.