Minister Fernandez welcomes the start of Disability Rights Awareness Month | Western Cape Government

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Minister Fernandez welcomes the start of Disability Rights Awareness Month

3 November 2021

The Western Cape Minister for Social Development, Sharna Fernandez, welcomes the start of National Disability Rights Awareness Month, which is commemorated annually between 3 November and 3 December.

“The rights afforded to persons with disabilities are constituted as human rights. All individuals deserve to be included and live a life of value in their community, which includes access to public spaces, housing opportunities, education, healthcare and opportunities for employment.

We remain committed to investing in opportunities for persons with disabilities to ensure that they are empowered and that their rights are protected,” said Minister Fernandez.

The White Paper on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities serves as a call to action for government, civil society and the private sector to work together to ensure the socio-economic inclusion of persons with disabilities.

Although there is no single definition of disability that has achieved consensus, all rights-based definitions share common elements, which include:

1. presence of impairment,

2. internal and external limitations or barriers that hinder full and equal participation

3. Loss or lack of access to opportunities due to environmental barriers or negative perceptions and attitudes of society

The Western Cape Department of Social Development (DSD) remains steadfast in providing services that align with the priority areas identified by the disability sector. These priority areas include:

  • Children and young persons with disabilities are empowered to chart their destiny through access to quality lifelong learning.
  • A built environment accessible to all persons with disabilities.
  • Persons with disabilities as equal players in building inclusive economies.
  • Children and women with disabilities – feeling and being safe as equal citizens in their communities.

Presently, the provincial DSD provides financial support to more than 220 Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs). Services rendered by the Department and its NPO partners include:

  • Disability awareness and educational programmes,
  • Developmental supportive and therapeutic services (social work interventions): counselling, support group programmes and daycare programmes for adults and children with disabilities,
  • Support programmes for families/caregivers,
  • Protective workshops services and residential care services.

For the financial year under review, R196.46 million has been budgeted for developmental social welfare services for persons with disabilities, their families and caregivers. This reflects a nearly 400% increase in our budget for persons with disabilities over the past ten years (R50.85 million was budgeted for Disabilities in the 2009/10 financial year).

As part of the Disability Mainstreaming Strategy, the Department continues advocating, striving for and ensuring that the disability element is inherent in every programme or project implemented.

The Department is also working in partnership with the NGO sector on:

  • Advocacy on access to services;
  • Shift on Policy Development: issues of disability being recognised and taken into account; and
  • Progress made on the availability of Mainstream ECDs and access to services in Special Day Care Centres.

Some recent achievements of our Program for Persons with Disabilities Programme include:

  • The approval of a disability mainstreaming strategy;
  • The training of social workers on Mental Disability and a Uniform Referral Pathway for holistic assessment and appropriate referral of persons with disabilities;
  • The establishment of Parent support structures in partnership with the Disabled Children Action Group (an NPO run and managed by the parents of children with disabilities), and some local municipalities;
  • The expansion of Peer Support Programme services in and across the Province; and
  • Capacity building on norms and standards and improved monitoring and reporting processes, which has resulted in increased NPO compliance.
  • For more information contact:

  Any persons interested in finding out more information about the services we offer those people with disabilities can contact our department by calling0800 220 250, to be directed to your nearest local DSD office.

For more information about our other services, please refer to the Western Cape Department’s Website below:

https://www.westerncape.gov.za/dept/social-development

Media Enquiries: 

Joshua Covenant Chigome

Spokesperson for the Minister of Social Development, Minister Sharna Fernandez

Email: Joshua.chigome@westerncape.gov.za­