THE Disabled People’s Association of Solomon Islands (DPASI) continues to carry out inclusive work in communities in the country in order to reach out to people with special needs outside of Honiara.
DPASI Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Casper Fa’asala said some of their recent programmes included eight poultry projects in Auki, which were delivered last month to the Malaita Provincial Secretary George Eric.
These were for the disability self-help groups within Central Kwara’ae, West Kwara’ae and Aoke-Langalanga constituencies.
Another eight projects were delivered to Savo Island in the Central Islands Province (CIP) last month. Six of these were poultry projects, whilst two were piggery projects.
Mr Fa’asala said currently, DPASI is waiting on the UN Women Regional Office in Fiji for funds to buy livestock as part of these projects.
The livestock includes piglets, boars and soars for the two piggery projects and chicks for the six poultry projects along with feed. Funds for the project will also cater for eating and drinking equipment.
Projects worth more than SBD1 million were funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) through United Nations, which works with DPASI to implement the projects under the Women’s Resilience and Climate Change Programme and Sustainable Livelihood.
Mr Fa’asala said under these projects, DPASI also has a partnership with the International Women’s Development Agency funded by the European Union (EU).
He DPASI is also included to rollout projects under their funding to support SafeNet offices.
With this, DPASI, under their Disability Sensitization Programme, conducted trainings on disability inclusion in the SafeNet centers in and around Honiara.
Three centers that have been supported were a Christian Care Center in Tenaru, Isabel Provincial Council of Women and a Christian Care Center in Auki.
Trainings are to support the centers to become more accessible and therefore providing facilities in terms of pathways, building ramps in case people with disabilities may seek shelters.
Mr Fa’asala said all-in-all, these are the support that DPASI will provide reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities in communities in case some of them appear in in those centres. These are for their protection and accessibility.
He said next year, DPASI will broaden its services through rural training centres because they need to see and accept the need for inclusive education and should include persons with disabilities to be enrolled.
This will be through a partnership agreed on with New Zealand to work jointly with DPASI to deliver training programmes through the Don Bosco Rural Training Centre in Henderson.
By AGNES MENANOPO
Solomon Star, Honiara
