By Funmi Falobi - Lagos
There is no doubt that people with disabilities suffer neglect and at times stigmatization from the society. While efforts are being made in some areas to ensure their inclusion into the society, a great deal still has to be done in the area of HIV intervention for people with disability.
Consequentlies, this year’s disability day focused on inclusion of people living with disability into this year’s theme; “Break Barriers, Open Doors for an Inclusive Society for All.”
Consequently, at a media roundtable organized by Journalists Against AIDS (JAAIDS) Nigeria, in collaboration with the Nigeria Association of the Blind (NAB), there were calls for more media advocacy for people living with disability especially the visually impaired in the area of HIV/AIDS interventions in the country.
While many programmes and materials are abound in creating awareness on HIV/AIDS, some of them still need to be done in such a way that would meet with the needs of the disabled people in the society.
Speaking on accessibility to information and services for HIV/AIDS for the blind and partially sighted, Dr. Oladipupo Fisher, Lagos State AIDS Control Agency’s Strategy identified hindering factors in HIV interventions for the group to include poor access to HIV information and knowledge, lack of disability friendly services, and low knowledge of disability and HIV. He revealed that 3.2 to 19 million Nigerians are living with disability while over one million Nigerians are either blind or partially sighted.
Painfully, 61 percent of the figure are below 18 years.
According to him, one of the strategies to increase access to HIV services include awareness, creation and information dissemination in disability accessible format – the use of Braille, large print for the partially sighted and audio.
He also emphasized treatment, care and support services targeting people with disability, research, monitoring and evaluation system, capacity building/re-orientation of healthcare workers as well as strengthening the capacity and networking of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs).
He explained that so far in Lagos State, the body has been able to identify the existing gaps which would reverse and address the challenges identified. Involvement of people with disability in the development of the State’s strategic plan, sign language training for HIV counselor testers and increase collaboration with various groups among people with disability in order to know their needs and meet them.
He stated that to move forward in the HIV intervention for people living with disability, there must be implementation of disability specific programmes that service diverse persons with disabilities, the need to train the blind, redesigning of HIV/AIDS M&E system to capture HIV in disability information at the national level, full participation of people with disability in HIV/AIDS control and sensitization activities.
“People with disability should be trained in the use of condom so that they too can train their peers. For us to get to zero we need everybody on board. Everybody has peculiar need, everybody must be on board to achieve zero infection, over time prevalence will be zero. For us to live positively we need testing,” he said.
In his submission, Dr. Sheu Adebayo, Executive Secretary, Disability Policy and Advocacy Initiative said people with disabilities are exposed to the same risk factors for HIV as every non-disabled person. Moreover, due to their often marginalised and vulnerable position in the community (e.g. lack of access to information, low literacy rate and stigma), people with disabilities are at an even higher risk of contracting HIV.
He declared that issues of inclusion of people with disability is still far. While government policies are well crafted and bit of information gap for people involved how to find them cause disconnection.
‘When policy makers and stakeholders plan intervention for HIV, there’s this general neglect, people with disability are not carried along in the planning, either forgotten or come at the tail end and issues of involving them become problem – no budget.
If we carry everybody along or strategies, it would have been very inclusive and it saves resources.”
He explained that when disabled people are carried along in the planning, government does not need to spend extra money because they would have included them right from the beginning when they are planning their intervention for the people stressing that HIV programme should be planned like computer that is useful for all.
He also emphasized that media reports and tools should include people with disabilities in such a way that it doesnot become humiliating and send wrong message.
However, he said in some instances, special resources are needed for intervention for people with disability like buying of Braille.
“Radio is good for visually impaired persons to disseminate information. Audio CD is also useful. Where you need extra resources, the cost is very marginal.
Be more practical in your presentation so that those in the audience have a feel of what is being said. Audio and touch is good for people that can’t hear, they feel it.
The deaf work well with billboards.“
While adding that disability causes delay in persons with disability, he advocated that people should be very descriptive in the way they give out information “for an HIV programme for the blind, describe where the services are and how to get there. Be detailed in your description as professionals such that everybody is captured.”
He declared that many blind people do not attend HIV programme because they do not know how to access information adding that for the physically challenged, event should be organized with minimal barriers – no fourth floor, use open space for easy accessibility.
Ejiro Sharon Okotie, Coordinator, NAB said sadly, in spite of the progress made to combat HIV, Persons with Disabilities(PWDS) especially the visually impaired have not been fully included.
Disability in itself predisposes a person to hardship and poverty especially in the developing world where there are hardly provisions for persons with disabilities, visually-impaired Nigerians are at a great disadvantage.
She said the empowerment of visually impaired women with HIV knowledge and economic skills in order to achieve gender equity and reduce their social marginalisation and risk to HIV/AIDS is important in the inclusion prospect.
They are more vulnerable to HIV so there is need to increase their knowledge on HIV and AIDS issues.
“In order to have an all-encompassing success in our fight against HIV/AIDS,new HIV infection, stigma and discrimination as well as HIV related deaths in Nigeriaand in reaching the ambition of “Getting to Zero”, the visually impaired and other Persons with Disabilities (PWDS) must be includedin this laudable ambition as everybody is needed in “Getting to Zero”.
We are passionately appealing to the Government at all levels, CSOS/NGOs, private sectors and all Agencies to support Nigeria Association of the Blind to reach out to our members in as many ways as possible.
With unity of purpose, the successes recorded in HIV prevention and control would be complete if we get the support of the different stakeholders.
“An HIV-free generation isn’t just a dream, let’s make it a reality!!!”
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