Madagascar: Creating a Support Center for Disabled Young Women

[en français]

According to Handicap International's 2000 study, only 10% of children with disabilities in Madagascar have access to schooling. The reasons most often suggested are the following:

• the families' financial difficulties
• the parents' negligence
• the problem of mobility

Concerned with progressively eliminating the inadequacy of schooling and the exclusion which victimize persons with disabilities, I put into place a support center for educational and professional transition for young women with disabilities, the "Centre Sembana Mijoro", on June 17, 2003.

The creation of this center was neither a matter of chance nor a passing fancy; rather, it is tied to my own personal history and to some concrete facts.

I acquired my disability at the age of three in the aftermath of poliomyelitis. At the time, my parents were quite worried about my future. They considered education my only chance at achieving some independence, and paying for my school fees was always a priority for them, even though we are a large family. I attended primary and secondary school at a private institution owned by a friend of my mother. But problems arose when I tried to sign up for the second-year enrolment exam at the ESCA (Sacred Heart School Antanimena). The Director refused my candidacy for the simple reason that I have a disability. He gave three reasons:

• I came from a relatively unknown school and he doubted my intellectual development
• If I were admitted, I would risk scaring the other students, and especially risk slowing down the pace of the lessons
• The four-floor schoolhouse had no elevators and he wanted to avoid insurance problems

Still, my mother persisted and even ended up threatening the Director with a lawsuit challenging his refusal to accept a student solely because they have a disability.

In the end, the Director accepted my candidacy on the condition that I succeed academically and that my parents cover the costs of any damage to the school. I worked hard to abide by this commitment and to disprove what he thought about me. The result was that I became one of the very best students in my class.

Another problem surfaced when I looked for a company to sponsor my professional internship to complete my degree in Management. My candidacy was refused because the employers did not want additional problems. It took a letter of recommendation from the school for me to finally find a company. I started my internship one week later than all my friends, and you can't imagine how frustrated I felt. I asked myself: "what good is it to study if employers do not want to recruit a worker with a disability?"

All these biases have become a source of motivation for me to agitate in favor of the rights of persons with disabilities, and this is why I was, am, and will be committed to fighting for equal opportunities for disabled persons.

Participating in the training conference "Women with Disabilities: Beijing +5", held in New York in 2000 (by the World Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation International), further reinforced my determination to act by exposing me to the active involvement of these women with disabilities from all corners of the world.

The Center Sembana Mijoro (C.S.M.), therefore, works to support the educational and professional transition of young women with disabilities, operating on three levels:

• support for schooling by granting scholarships
• legal support in case of rejection by the school
• work placement for qualified young women

For the 2003-2004 school year (our first year of operation), 23 young women with physical disabilities have been accepted, and they attend schools near their respective homes. They come to the center each Wednesday afternoon and Saturday morning for training, coaching and moral support, since our goal is to help them not only be competent and productive, but also responsible and sociable in their personal as well as their professional lives.

What a joy to see them regain an interest in their lives, feel useful and want to give their best in order to live like everyone else. One of the girls at the center had almost committed suicide because no one would take care of her, but since coming to the center she wants to live for as long as possible.

A person with a disability can be a partner in development, as long as the needs tied to her disability are supported by the state and by the community.

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