Conference promotes rights of people with disabilities

International cooperation is crucial to successfully realising the rights of people with disabilities, heard a conference jointly held by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) and Caritas - a Catholic charitable organisation, in Hanoi on June 23.

A vocational training course for people with disabilities (Credit: VNA)

The conference is part of the events in preparation for the country’s first report on the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) to the UN in the near future.

The promotion and protection of the rights of persons with disabilities is a priority in Vietnam’s policies towards this disadvantaged group, affirmed the participants at the event. They said the group have been represented through a system of legal regulations and the country’s ratification of the UNCRPD in 2015.

In the past few years, international cooperation in the field has been consolidated and the promotion of disabled people’s rights has drawn attention from numerous international organisations and non-governmental organisations.

The attendants also shared their experiences in international collaboration at the event.

Some representatives asked the MoLISA to further support for districts in providing healthcare for the disabled. They also suggested that the relevant branches set up specific support policies and encourage investment in rehabilitation centres for persons with disabilities.

There are around 7.2 million people with disabilities in Vietnam, accounting for 7.8% of the population, one of the highest levels in the Asia- Pacific. More than half (58%) of the disabled population are women, 28.3% are children and 15% live in poverty, according to statistics in 2016 of the National Committee for People with Disabilities.

MoLISA’s statistics showed that around 900,000 people with disabilities are receiving a monthly allowance. All centrally-governed cities and provinces have built rehabilitation facilities for the disabled and during 2011-2015 around 140,000 people with disabilities received vocational training and found jobs through State-sponsored programmes.

(Source: NDO)