Ghana: The Inclusive Family Alliance has called for urgent national attention to caregivers and families of persons with disabilities, alongside the speedy passage of the re-enacted Persons with Disabilities Bill as Ghana marks National Disability Day. The Alliance emphasized the critical role of caregivers in disability inclusion, highlighting that their needs are often neglected in public policy.
According to Ghana News Agency, the Alliance issued a statement underscoring that families are the primary and most consistent source of care, emotional support, advocacy, rehabilitation, and protection for many individuals with disabilities. The statement pointed out that when caregivers are unsupported, the repercussions extend beyond families to affect persons with disabilities themselves.
The Alliance stressed the importance of supporting those who provide daily care, particularly parents and caregivers of children with cerebral palsy and other disabilities, who bear significant physical, emotional, financial, and social responsibilities with minimal structured support.
The Inclusive Family Alliance reiterated its advocacy priorities, which include the full implementation of disability-inclusive laws and programs, recognizing caregivers and families as essential stakeholders, and introducing targeted interventions to address caregiver needs. These interventions should encompass mental health and psychosocial support, respite care, inclusive education, access to healthcare and rehabilitation services, social protection, and economic empowerment. The Alliance also called for heightened national attention to the realities faced by families raising children with cerebral palsy and other developmental and physical disabilities.
Mrs. Hannah Awadzi, Founder and Executive Director of Inclusive Family Alliance, and mother of a 13-year-old girl with cerebral palsy, emphasized that disability policy cannot be effective if it overlooks the lived reality of families and caregivers. 'Families and caregivers are not peripheral to the disability conversation; they are central to it,' she stated.
The Alliance concluded with a call to build a future where persons with disabilities can thrive, and where the families and caregivers who support them are also acknowledged and supported.
National Disability Day in Ghana is observed annually on June 23 to highlight disability rights, inclusion, and the need for stronger legal and policy frameworks. June 23 was selected as Ghana's National Disability Day as it commemorates the anniversary of the passage of the Persons with Disability Act (Act 715) in 2006.