Stakeholders need to join forces with the commission toward supporting the course of persons with disabilities in the country.
The Federal Government has urged stakeholders to ensure strict compliance with the law making it mandatory for organisations to make their facilities accessible to persons with disabilities (PWDs) across the country.
Executive Secretary of National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD), James Lalu, stated this on Monday in Abuja, as part of the enlightenment toward the January 15, 2024 deadline.
Lalu said that the enlightenment had become necessary in order to persuade organisations on the implementation of the accessibility law whose enforcement was expected to commence upon expiration of the deadline.
The executive secretary, who was represented by the Head of Accessibility Department, NCPWD, Hannah Olayinka, emphasised the need for organisations, especially public facilities, to accommodate PWDs in the design of their structures.
”As the five-year moratorium on accessibility compliance comes to an end on the15th January, 2024, we have spelt out certain parameters expected of public facilities in order to accommodate persons with disabilities.
”We also interface with various higher institutions to ensure that infrastructure that are accessible to persons with disabilities are effected.
“These include: physical/digital communications, sign languages and transportation accessibility,” he said.
Lalu expressed the regret that despite public enlightenment on the accessibility law, some people still found it difficult to differentiate one type of accessibility from the other. According to him, the common ramps in most public facilities do not have the right features for wheelchair users.
He, however, commended the managements of University of Ilorin and Usman Dan Fodio University, Sokoto for adhering to the accessibility standards on infrastructure in their respective institutions.
“If you visit the Leprosy Village in Kwali (FCT), the environment has become more conducive with the construction of 40 units of accessible public toilets in compliance with the law.
“This will go a long way in minimising the rate of contracting infectious diseases within that vicinity,” he said.
The NCPWD executive secretary urged the public not to hesitate in asking for the right advice from the commission in the construction of accessible structures. Also speaking, the Country Coordinator of Sightsavers Nigeria, Esther Bature, commended the efforts of the commission in its quest to deliver on its mandate.
Bature called stakeholders to join forces with the commission toward supporting the course of persons with disabilities in the country.
