Pakistan: Progress Report on Vocational Training of Adults with Disabilities
By Mark Richards, ILRU Program
In 1986, Pakistan established the Office of the Directorate General of Special Education with the goal, in part, of establishing educational institutions for children with disabilities. However, there was no substantial vocational rehabilitation program for these children upon reaching adulthood, nor, for that matter, any adult with disabilities.
In 1992, the Project Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment of Disabled Persons (VREDP) was established to produce a cost-effective program which could make rehabilitation and employment services available to people with disabilities utilizing the resources available in the community.
As reported by the Pakistan Ministry of Women Development, Social Welfare and Special Education Department, "It is an innovative project in terms of shifting the policy from the disability benefit, charity based services to the integration of the disabled persons in their local labour market. It is also a diversion from the expensive and inflexible institution-based vocational training programmes to exploring unlimited avenues to provide the disabled persons opportunities for becoming useful and productive members of society to best possible extent."
The following is a report of the project's advances to date from the Pakistan Ministry of Women Development, Social Welfare and Special Education.
Achievements of VREDP from 1993 to 2001
-
39 non-government organizations (NGOs) (19 NGOs in Rawalpindi, Islamabad, 19 in Karachi, and one in Gujrat mobilized and worked for the objectives of VREDP).
-
Based on a properly formed network, medical services/referral provided for people with disabilities in all the areas of work.
-
225 volunteers were trained and provided with continued guidance, 635 people with disabilities put on training, while 463 people with disabilities were rehabilitated.
-
Pakistan Council for Appropriate Technology involved training volunteers and people with disabilities to carry out marketable skill/trades.
-
Seminar organized on "Employment of People with Disabilities" in collaboration with Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industries (LCCI). Report of seminar printed and circulated.
-
An Employment Cell for people with disabilities initiated at LCCI in collaboration with organizations working for people with disabilities in Lahore.
-
A handbook on the implementation of the project printed and circulated.
-
Training organized in "Microenterprise Development" for the volunteers and disabled women. Training was given by experts of Entrepreneur Career Institutes.
-
Workshops and Seminars Conducted:
-
Five-day seminars to produce case-based reasoning (CBR) supervisors organized at Islamabad, Lahore, and Karachi. Attended by 85 participants from all over Pakistan.
-
Five-day workshops on micro-enterprise development organized for the participants of above-mentioned seminars at Lahore and Karachi. The workshop was conducted by Director Entrepreneur Development Career Institute.
-
Two-to-three day workshop on "CBR and Networking conducted by the Director VREDP: in 1999 at Abbottabad-D.I. Khan - Mardan - Islamabad and in 2000 at Lahore --- Multan - Swat.
-
A book in Urdu consisting of 17 chapters about different aspects of CBR and disabilities printed and circulated.
-
District Rehabilitation Committee consisting of representatives of line departments & NGOs formed in Islamabad.
-
Soft revolving loan scheme to promote self-employment for people with disabilities started in January 1999 in Islamabad and Karachi in March 2001.
-
Soft revolving loans were provided by VREDP to 18 people with disabilities for self-employment by means of establishing small businesses.
|
