The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Amb. Mariam Yalwaji Katagum has reaffirmed the committment of the federal government to support people living with disabilities in the country.
A statement signed by Assistant Director Information, Mrs. Oluwakemi Ogunmakinwa said the Minister said this when she received in a delegation from the Network of the Disabled Women led by the National Secretary, Mary Omoyeme Musa in her office on Wednesday.
TheFact Nigeria noted that the Minister used the opportunity of the visit to count the blessings that the federal government had bestowed upon persons living with disabilities in the country.
The Minister said the President Buhari-led administration was passionate about the wellbeing of persons with disabilities which led to the creation of the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities to address their various challenges and mainstream them for better inclusion in the policies and programmes of government.
Amb. Katagum further explained that a lot was being done by the federal government to support people with disabilities, citing, the allocation of five percent in every track of the MSMEs Survival Fund which was meant to cushion the effect of COVID-19 on MSMEs to people living with disabilities.
Amb. Katagum also said that the Federal Executive Council always ensured that every memo on new office building that came to the council for consideration accommodated relevant structures to serve persons living with disabilities.
The Minister also made it known that her Ministry had a Gender Unit with mandate to address issues relating to women especially in business and trade with due consideration to women living with disabilities.
While urging the delegation to leverage on the training opportunities that abound in the Ministry through its parastatals such as Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) among others, she said that the Industrial Training Fund has about sixty vocational skills training with certification and starter packs.
The Minister acknowledged the efforts of the Network of the Disabled Women and advised that a lot of advocacy programmes be carried out among their various groups in order to tap into various government policies and programmes.
National Secretary, Network of the Disabled Women and leader of the delegation, Mary Omoyeme Musa said the purpose of their visit was to introduce the organization and seek for collaboration with the Ministry particularly in areas of mainstreaming into developmental programmes, training in business and trade opportunities, among others.
The Deputy Director, Gender Unit in the Ministry, Mrs. Achinam Chioma Fidel in her closing remarks acknowledged the willingness of the Network of the Disabled Women to be involved in the Ministry’s programmes and expressed the readiness of the Ministry to work with the organisation.
