The Ministry of Labour, Human Services and Social Security and Habitat for Humanity Guyana signed an agreement that will see the construction of a core home for a differently-abled man.
According to a Govern-ment Information Agency (GINA) press release, Siddiqi Haniff will benefit from a two-bedroom, 330square foot timber and concrete house that will be built three feet from ground level. It will also be equipped with a kitchen sink, electrical wiring and plumbing.
“This is one of the pilot projects that we are jointly undertaking to assist those persons in our society …who are differently-abled,” Minis-ter of Human Services and Social Security Jennifer Webster said. She said this step is being taken in accordance with the ministry’s mandate which dictates that it supports persons that are differently-abled.
“…The National Commis-sion on Disability has been mandated to do a number of things including to follow up on differently-abled person…the Ministry… through our mandate and programmes are supporting the differently-abled… this is one initiative we have undertaken and we hope in the future that we will be able to do more as there are many more persons with disabilities who need this kind of support,” Webster explained.
According to the minister, the first step in this initiative is a stepping stone to doing other things for the persons who are differently- abled in society. The ministry also supports the Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) groups within regions Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and Seven by offsetting their transportation costs for the differently-abled.
“This is another initiative that the ministry has taken. For this quarter we will be giving them about $693,000 to defray transportations costs for the members of the CBR groups in those regions…we have also assisted one of the members of the CBR in Region 4 with building the ramp for her house which was built based on a commitment by former President [Bharrat] Jagdeo,” Webster said.
Resources Development Coordinator for Habitat for Humanity Guyana Sinnika Henry said that the occasion was noteworthy for the charity, not only because of the inking of the agreement but also because it is World Habitat Day.
“In December 1985, the United Nations General Assembly declared the first Monday in October to be World Habitat Day… the idea was to make people aware of the problem of housing… to let people know that there’s a solution if we can partner they way we are partnering today… and to achieve the policies and the habits that have brought people to this stage where they are in such poverty,” Henry said. She also noted that the signing of the agreement on such an occasion demonstrates Habitat’s support to families like Haniff’s.
Haniff extended gratitude to both the ministry and Habitat for Humanity for undertaking to help him realise his dream of home-ownership. “I hope and pray that in some way I should be able to repay these two organisations for their dedication to this task,” Haniff said.
GINA said the ministry has been actively engaging the attention of groups and individuals that need support such as the women’s entrepreneurial group – through the Women of Worth programme – the elderly and the vulnerable. It has planned a month of activities to commemorate the United Nations Day for the Elderly, which was celebrated on Monday under the theme ‘Caring for the elderly in our institutions and home’. These are: a church service at the Palms on October 1, a Health Fair on October 16, a trip to Splashmin’s on October 19, a brunch on October 24 and a cultural event for senior citizens, again at the Palms, on October 31.
