At opening of CONRHA National Ordinary Session 2024: Social affairs minister states reintegrating people with disabilities, gov’t priority.

This was during the opening ceremony of the 2024 National Ordinary Session of the National Committee for the Re-adaptation and Socio-Economic Reintegration of People with Disabilities, CONRHA.

The session is on the theme: “The implementation of the United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities”. It will close on September 19.

According to the minister, the session is being held against the backdrop of the country’s ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, CRPD.

“The aim of the conference is to ensure that, prior to the planned codified assessments, all those involved in the psychosocial and socio-economic support of people with disabilities are fully aware of the content, requirements and challenges of this Convention, whose full implementation is now mandatory for all,” Minister Nguene stated.

She added that “the agenda of this meeting will address the challenges we must take up to translate into concrete action the significant involvement of disabled people, so that they feel more taken into account, with full equality and dignity”. 

To further buttress her point, Minister Nguene quoted the Head of State’s message to the Nation on December 31, 2022, in which President Biya, expressed government’s commitment to maintaining efforts aimed at improving the living conditions of Cameroonians.

This, she said, is particularly through the continued implementation of the social inclusion policy, which takes into account the disability approach in all sectors of public life, and guarantees access for disabled people to a minimum standard of living.

“In other words, the President’s challenge is to reduce to their simplest expression the difficulties that disabled people still encounter in their integration,” the minister said.

Minister Nguene then urged CONRHA members to work with great dedication and self-sacrifice to ensure a successful conclusion to of the task ahead. 

This, according to the minister, is to ensure that the CRPD is respected and enforced in the country, because non-compliance or violation of its provisions may result to sanctions.

Councils tasked to take lead

Speaking earlier, the Director of Social Protection of Persons with Disabilities and the Elderly, Ndengho Maurine, revealed that the 2024 session of the CONHRA is particular in that decentralised local authorities who are key actors for local development will be encouraged to become more involved in local inclusive development. This, with the goal to ‘leave no one behind’.

According to Ndengho, this will be through the Best Inclusive Municipality, competition, launched by the Ministry of Social Affairs, with the support of the Cameroon Baptist Convention Health Services, CBCHS.

It is aimed at awarding five most disability inclusive municipalities during the celebration of the 33rd edition of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

“The impetus should start at the local level, because if the specific needs of people with disabilities are integrated and met upstream, in each community, and their projects and initiatives promoted, they will be able to actively trigger an economic and social dynamic, as those responsible for their own development,” Ndengho stated, adding that: “The repercussions will lay solid foundations at the national level for an inclusive society in which everyone has a place and feels involved”.  

Statistics of persons with disability 

Ndengho disclosed that according to disaggregated data published in 2022 by the Central Office of Censuses and Population Studies, BUCREP, on the basis of the latest General Population and Housing Census, RGPH, persons with disabilities in Cameroon, constitute 15% of the population. That is 3,736,548 persons with disabilities, including 1,846,036 men and 1,889,643 women, for a population of 24,910,305.

About CONRHA

CONRHA is a cross-sectorial consultative body whose mission is to facilitate the coordination of efforts deployed by public authorities, civil society organisations and other private individuals for the benefit and participation of people with disabilities. 

It was created by Decree No. 2018/6234/PM of 26, July 2018, on the reorganization of the National Committee for the Rehabilitation and Socio-economic Reintegration of Persons with Disabilities, CONRHA. 

This article was first published in The Guardian Post issue N0:3234 of Thursday September 19, 2024