Cape Deaf to start Deafblind Education Unit in September

Mr Setumte Ametewee, the Principal of the Cape Coast School for the Deaf and Blind (Cape Deaf) on Tuesday said the institution will open a Deafblind Education Units next September.

The Deafblind Education Unit would provide education, rehabilitation and care facilities for one of the most neglected and under-served groups in society.

Mr Ametewee made the disclosure when the United Nations Population Fund and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNFPA-UNICEF) Joint Programme Steering Committee (JPSC) paid a courtesy call on him in Cape Coast in the Central Region.

Members of the delegation include Mr Christian Tardif, Director, Cooperation, Canadian High Commission; Madam Anne-Claire Dufay, UNICEF Country Representative in Ghana; Mr Niyi Ojuolape, UNFPA Country Representative in Ghana; and Reverend Dr Comfort Asare, Director for Gender, Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection.

The UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme, dubbed “Empowering Adolescent Girls through Improved Access to Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) and Rights-Based Quality Sexual and Reproductive Health Services in Ghana”, is being funded by the Canada Global Affairs in 36 districts in eight regions.

It is designed to support Government implement its adolescent girls’ vision and deliver more integrated and multisectoral responses to address the interrelated needs of adolescent girls in Ghana.

The timeframe for implementation is 2018-2020.

The visit forms part of the JPSC’s three-day field visit to project districts within the Central Region.

Mr Ametewee said at the moment there was only one Deafblind Education Unit in the Country; adding that the Cape Deaf was currently housing the Deaf and Blind Education Unit.

He said the School had a population of 531 pupils of which 361 were females.

Mr Ametewee, who lauded UNFPA-UNICEF for their sponsorship for the Cape Deaf Adolescent Health Club and Infirmary, also noted that due to poverty, some parents were finding it very difficult to provide school uniforms and sandals for their children.

He also appealed to other development partners to come to the aid of the School.

Madam Salomey Afful, the Nursing Officer in-charge of the Cape Deaf Infirmary and the Adolescent Corner, said through the project they were able to provide reproductive health education to the pupils.

On her part, Madam Dufay, who noted that "Disability does not mean inability", also called for the total elimination of stigmatisation against People Living With Disabilities.

She said every child was endowed with gifts and talents, which they must be assisted to discover.

She said Ghana was the first country in the world to ratify the Convention on the Right of the Child, which demonstrates the country's commitment to protect the child and fulfill children’s right.

Mr Tardif said the High Commission would continue to partner other development organisations to better the lives of children.

Mr Ojuolape said UNFPA sought to assist children to unearth their gifts and talents to enable them contribute to the nation's socio-economic development.