Radio time

On the eve of our departure from Zambia, we completed our work with an interview on disability issues on one of the local radio stations, Radio Mosi O Tunya (dubbed "Radio that Thunders", which reaches about 30,000 listeners during the time that we were on air. The interview was great, and we were able to cover many of the topics that we usually include in our trainings. There is no way to know, of course, how this will resonate with listeners, but being able to get ideas out to so many people at once is certainly a good thing. Audio won't upload now, but we will try again when we get home. We'll post again with some last impressions of our work here in Zambia once we get back to Minnesota.

Thank you to everyone in Zambia who has made this experience a great one for us, and for your work to improve the lives of people with disabilities. We hope to be back soon!

-Matt, Derek, and Kristin

Livingstone

Greetings from Livingstone! We completed our final training of the trip on Saturday. A group of 21 special and basic school teachers (and the provincial inspector of special schools) from the Livingstone area schools gathered, on a Saturday on their holiday no less. We spent a few hours training and discussing issues related to inclusion, employment preparation, and advancing changes in schools. Since the training was in one of the school's three computer labs with legitatimate high-speed internet (the fastest in Zambia I think--they even had a SmartBoard) we couldnt pass on the opportunity to introduce the group to the College of Direct Support training program. After a brief crash course and discussion about how to overcome the internet/computer accessibility challenges we let people check it out on their own. Some people obviously hadn't used a computer/mouse before, let alone the internet. Those that had were able to practice and demonstrate using the program with less computer-experienced teachers by test driving a lesson. The engagement and enthusiasm was high. It was a great thing to witness and I am confident that a few of the teachers will use the program in the future. This morning we ran into the head master of the school the training was conducted at--he reported that he received 12 calls of appreciation and satisfaction about the training. In an informal evaluative sense, we feel we were at least successful reaching some of the teachers.

There may be one more work task involved here in that we may be on the radio on Tuesday morning to be interviewed about disability and the work we've been doing here. Apparently the show is wide-reaching in Livingstone, so this would be a good opportunity to reach many people.

The Copperbelt

Hello all--we thought we'd write a quick post as long as we have got internet for... a little while? We have been busy up in the Copperbelt. Yesterday we had the opportunity to meet with officials from the Ministry of Education in Kitwe, 60 kilometers from where we are based, at the Franciscan Center in Ndola. We have heard a lot about the importance of the Ministry in bringing access to education for all children, so we were very happy to get the meeting and make some connections at the Ministry. The staff we met there were, a lot like people we have met in other groups, feeling constrained by their budgets, and also open to discussion and new ideas. It was good to make their acquaintance.
We then met a self-advocate, Julien, also in Kitwe. She is a dynamic woman, very outgoing, very personable, and is a strong advocate in her community, despite many, many challenges.
Today we did a training here in the morning at the Franciscan Center, with teachers, nurses, self-advocates (including Julien), parents, and clergy. The diversity of the group made for a strong conversation. We were happy that many of the people in the training connected with each other, and hopefully built upon their advocacy network. In particular, Julien had told us that she plays sports every week with her group of self-advocates, and in our group was a sports education teacher who needed ideas on how to include people with disabilities in class. It was wonderful to see these two make a connection and share ideas.
In the afternoon we did a training with the novitiate (friars in training, basically), who are in a year of spiritual reflection here at the Franciscan Center. The group asked a lot of good questions, and we had a fruitful discussion on inclusion, community, and the roles they can take towards advocacy as religious persons in their community.
Tomorrow we head back to Lusaka, then on to Livingstone. The friars have been gracious hosts, and we have been enjoying our time in the Copperbelt.

The latest from Lusaka

It has been a busy few days since our last post. This is a lengthy message, but we hope some of you will find some of the updates interesting. We are covering a lot of new ground, so there is a lot to share...

08/17/09
The agenda for today was supposed to be meeting at the Ministry of Education. While it is not entirely clear to us exactly what the situation is, we do know that university students have been sent home for a two-week break; a cool down period after some ugly protests. The ministry people are busy with this and so we went to the hospital to see their autism assessment center. Derek, Matt and I were actually really excited about this change in plans; we were all hoping to visit the hospital while in Lusaka. We met with some of the staff involved in working at the autism assessment center, as well as Simate Simate, a volunteer in the Hearing and Speech Center (HSC). The HSC is not meant to function as a provider of hearing aids, but they have taken it upon themselves to do so. Parents do pay, but it is subsidized. Mr. Simate spoke with us about the process for providing support to those in need of hearing and speech supports, as well as his thoughts on needs for the HSC. As we have already heard here many times, early intervention is an issue. There are no hearing supports for children under pre-school age as they have no aids to fit them. The hearing aids they receive are mostly second-hand donations, which are then refurbished by technicians, and distributed to children (no adult services) who are deemed in need of them. Among the needs identified by Mr. Simate are a need for auditory trainers, tools to have successful early interventions, and training on how to use such tools. As with all the organizations we have encountered, the needs list is long. Another major issue is communication between parents and children. When children do learn sign language (American), the parents do not, and there is little way for parents and children to communicate with each other. There is also no work going on in speech therapy, and Mr. Simate noted the name of the HSC is a misnomer in this way.
Our next meeting was with Mr. Chongo, a physical therapist in the Center for Excellence. His work was made up of much more than working on autism, and he expressed that there are so many life-threatening conditions that they are dealing with at the hospital, that disability often takes a back seat. Basically, people are only seen for autism assessments if they present at the hospital for another condition and are then referred for an autism assessment. Mr. Chongo gave us a brief history of the work on autism at the hospital, which started with conversations in 2006. In 2008, the hospital started doing assessments, and within six months they identified 700 children. Currently, 50 children are being worked with at the clinic and there are three specialists including Mr. Chongo, an occupational therapist, and a speech therapist. For assessments, a pediatrician and a the parent also joins the team. They all conduct the assessment at the same time, taking notes while observing the child over 30 minutes. Mr. Chongo noted this is obviously not enough time to properly diagnose someone. They also rely heavily on sifting through past medical records and making judgments based on past notes that may indicate presence of autism. In the work they conduct after assessment, the therapists see the child and parent for 6-8 weeks, attempting to transfer skills to the parent on how to work with their child. After this, the parent and child work at home together for a month before coming back again to check in on how the work is progressing. We had the opportunity to walk through the assessment room, which doubles as the therapy room. It was very busy with two medical personnel, a parent who had been through the process and returns as a volunteer to work with other parents, and a roomful of children and parents all busy at work.
Mr. Chongo was really impressive to talk with. Though he spoke of the vast lack of knowledge across medical personnel at the hospital, it was clear he himself had taken pains to learn a lot, and he had a lot of good insight in to the Center’s needs. Some of these include training for staff, including pediatricians, as, like in the US, the medical doctor “has the final say.” Also, in Zambia, all children are required by law to visit a nurse once a month until they are five years old. Apparently there is good compliance with this, as the records are required to attend school. I wonder about compliance in the rural areas, but, for Lusaka, this seems to be the way it is. That said, nurses need training as identifiers of children in need of services. Mr. Chongo related to us that there are no supports for follow through on recommendations and supports. For example, a child may get a recommendation that says “fit for school” and that is where it ends. The child then goes to school without supports and is treated as a “nuisance.” In summary, Mr. Chongo told us that the missing link in Zambia is an interdisciplinary understanding of autism.
Briefly, Mikaela talked to us about her success in working with a girl with autism using CDS materials. After working with the girl using the “ABC” materials, the father returned to Mikaela and told her “I never thought I would be able to sit down and have a conversation with my daughter.” Mikaela has been asked to write a national course for autism. She is hopeful that the CDS course on autism will be helpful, and that more information and support can be provided. She is so committed to this work, it is wonderful to witness both her and Nama work, seemingly endlessly, around here.
8/18/09
Today, Tuesday, was another great day in Zambia. Despite the blue skies we were told it was unseasonably cold. As a Minnesotan in Zambia I was surprised how chilly it was. The day was also highly productive. Initially we were scheduled to provide advocacy training to parents from the Hidden Voices, a school specialized to provide education to children with disabilities. Unfortunately the Hidden Voices parents did not receive adequate notification. Initially we were unsure and pretty concerned about the appropriateness of our training and discussions for this new group but after introductions we were quiet excited and relieved to have the attention of our guests. They included five people from Parent Partnership Association for Children with Special Needs, an existing advocacy organization in Lusaka that is working to, according to their brochure, conduct training and assessments, operate a community school, and create disability committees in nine districts of Lusaka. Two people were from the Association of Parents with Special Learning Needs, an emerging national parent advocacy group that recently drafted its constitution and is nearly ready to register with the government. Professionally, these participants ranged greatly. Three had children with disabilities, one of which was also a Headmaster of a school. One was from the Ministry of Education and soon to be a Headmaster of a new school. Another was a Coordinator of Hidden Voices, and another woman has been working with parents and children with disabilities for thirteen years. She raised her own child with a disability with little to no supports, and now works to educate, support, and reduce stigma amongst parents. In all, we found the participants to be strategically positioned in their respective communities and professions to continue and expand their leadership and be effective agents of change in the area of disability supports and rights.
After recognizing our change in audience we quickly adapted the training to better meet the group’s higher sophistication in the disability arena and their organizational needs. A large portion of the training and discussions addressed topics of inclusion and normalization. Normalization in particular was a topic that resonated with the group, which led to an exciting discussion about ideas, experiences, and strategies. We also discussed employment and watched a video. It was clear to all of us that the group was thinking creatively about ways the current business community, individuals and families, and educational system could facilitate employment opportunities. Some ideas that we worked with included micro-enterprises, resource sharing, and skill development. We were able share our observations and learn a lot from the group’s experiences. The final topic we discussed with group encompassed strategies to plan, develop, and implement the type of social changes the respective groups were looking to make in their communities. Our hope was to provide some technical assistance in these organizational development and strategizing processes.
A few of the most exciting pieces of this training event were, first, the enthusiasm and dedication of this group. They were so interested in getting this knowledge so they could educate others that we provided each of them with the PowerPoint presentation so they could train others about these topics. We were also amazed how much this group engaged each other. As important as the training information was, we thought the most important outcome of this gathering was connecting these individuals and groups. It is clear that they understand the power of numbers in the advocacy world. Part way through the training, they all exchanged information so they could be in touch again. That was a huge success in our eyes, as well as the group’s.
Later, we took a walk into the Bauleni compound with Mikala’s daughter and another student here. It is about three blocks from where we are staying. The poverty we saw was unlike anything any of us have seen. There is a serious lack of water, sewage in the streets, children playing, working, washing, eating, all amongst garbage. In the rainy season, Mikala told us, most of the schools shut down because there is so much diarrheal disease. We asked the student touring us around what he thought we should take away from this and he said, “Zambians need education for a better life.”
8-19-09
Today we had a training with a group of teachers, some from special education schools, and some from basic schools with one or two classrooms for children with disabilities. There seems to be no age grouping for students with disabilities in many cases, so several teachers reported that they taught children ranging in age from 6 to 25 in the same room, which must be challenging at the very least. The group was well trained, most of them being graduates from ZAMISE, but many of the general topics that we cover in what has become our standard training were still new. Of particular interest was a section that we developed last night, at Mikela’s request, about positive behavioral supports. This was fairly well received.
An association of special education teachers has formed, but does not seem to be working with the parent groups yet, so this was a big point of conversation… that merging the efforts of the parent groups and teacher groups may help to raise the profile of the emerging disability movement if the groups can agree on basic goals and methods of advocacy, which seems quite feasible at this point as everyone seems concerned about providing educational opportunities, vocational training and opportunity, and reducing stigma.
Today was the anniversary of the former president’s death, so many people seemed sidetracked by the memorial events. He was hugely popular for fighting corruption, which, of course, is rampant. It’s interesting that the top news stories of the week have been the memorial for a president who fought corruption and that another former president, who had been charged with stealing a half million dollars worth of public funds, was acquitted by the high court, even though everyone seems to recognize that he did embezzle the funds. Irony.

8/20/09
First, and most importantly, before we get to activity updates, some absolutely amazing news… Mikela is one of five finalists to be named “Woman of the Year” for her efforts supporting and advocating for people with disabilities. Here’s what we know so far…
We were driving home from the reptile farm—where we saw many of what can only be described as a place of a few of Mikaela’s LEAST favorite things. Both she and Sister Nama endured it more than enjoyed it. We were sitting in the car preparing for the bumpy ride home (seriously—how none of us lost our lunch on that road…) when Mikaela received a phone call. It began with “We are live on the radio!” and went on to ask her a few questions that did not seem to follow the announcement of being live on the radio. “Are you Mikaela? Do you work with children with special needs? Do you know so and so?” and so on. We sort of thought, as did Mikaela, that she was about to receive bad news (save for the being live on the radio part). She said that she often receives such phone calls with that line of questioning when she is getting bad news on a child passing away. However, this call was of a much different nature. All of sudden we heard Mikaela saying, very excitedly, over and over again, “Oh thank you! Thank you so much!” and when she got off the phone, she was thrilled to relay the news that she is a woman of the year, an award for all of Zambia. She was nominated for the award by a very appreciative mother. There are now five finalists, who are women of the year, and another award will be given Monday for the one person chosen. Very exciting! It was only fitting that a minute or so after she got off the phone, she received another call. We remarked, “Wow—news travels fast—were people calling to congratulate you?” She said, “No, that was about a project I am working on with….” We all agreed, “That’s why you’re woman of the year!” Congratulations to Mikaela for this very wonderful honor!
Today we also visited the University of Zambia’s Special Education Department. We were meant to introduce the College of Direct Support, but internet access was quite poor, so we ended up explaining the CDS and its functions, and then talked about the special education curriculum offered at U of Z and how lecturers may be able to insert principles from CDS into their teaching. The crowd included the assistant dean, a couple lecturers, and three students who were very keen to learn, as are most students we have met here. The resources are scarce. Some of the textbooks they use are from the 1970s, and often times, students must share just 1 or 2 books among the whole class. They also have no access to modern journal articles, even online, so access to a tool such as CDS has the potential to revolutionize parts of their teaching and learning, but only if internet can hold up. Overall, this was a positive visit. The attendees were able to envision ways this could be useful in their practices. We agreed to get all attendees access to the CDS so they could determine appropriate ways to incorporate the training material in their training. They were also very interested in other partnerships where we could share information and collaborate.
We made a quick stop at Hidden Voice School as well, but there wasn’t much action since the students are on break. Parts of the school have had a new coat of paint, and some new ramps were built by a youth group that was here recently. They are expecting to have 20 students this year, with three teachers and one volunteer, plus Aggrey, the director. There is a great building on the other side of the school that could be turned into a skills training area for older students in transition to work. Service to older students is a massive problem since public transport is expensive and cannot offer accommodations, and parents cannot carry their children after they get too big. We talked about the idea of community education, whereby a teacher would visit older children in their homes. This happens on small scale, but funding for teachers is scarce, and people will not volunteer without expecting payment. This expectation of payment for everything (“volunteering”, attending meetings, etc.) is a real barrier to moving people with disabilities ahead in society, but until people are able to feed their families from other employment, it’s a tough problem to solve. On the other hand, if communities that have minimal financial resources are unable to identify and exploit the existing resources, such as each other, the barriers these communities face will be exacerbated. We have seen that community groups and voluntary advocacy organizations are present and growing, so there is hope that others will take notice and adapt their approaches. We asked Mikaela what she thinks needs to happen here to make some immediate impact and she responded that parents need to get involved, volunteering in and for the schools. When a school needs a new building the parents need to come together to either raise the funds with assistance from the broader community or they need to assist in the actual labor needed to create a new school. The community groups and the leaders in the disability field that we met with during this trip and previous trips are hopefully the leaders that can start that movement.
We ate pizza today!!!

Arrival! and Chawama advocacy training

After some flight difficulties that required us to stay in Johannesburg overnight, we have arrived in Zambia, and could not be happier to be here! We were greeted at the airport by Sr. Nama and Mikela, who brought us to Bauleni Street Kids, which will be our home for the next week. We spent the first day getting acquainted our colleagues here, meeting some of the kids who live and learn here, and going over our itinerary for our time here. We were also very fortunate that today was the day that a number of employees from Barclays Bank were here to make donations and assist in projects. In recognition of their work, there was a special dance with drumming and singing, put on by some of the kids. It made for a wonderful introduction to Bauleni and to Zambian culture.
Bauleni is truly an amazing place, as some of you are aware. In addition to the education of children with and without disabilities, Bauleni is remarkable for their projects aimed at self-sustainability. There is a garden that more resembles a farm, complete with some of the largest cabbage I have ever seen, row upon row of tomatoes, chickens, and some very active pigs (which we were quickly assured were free of swine flu). In addition, there are a number of workshops for students who do not make the qualifying exam to move past seventh grade. These shops make clothes, weaving, woodwork, and teach agricultural skills, among other trades. The products from all of these projects are sold in the community to help sustain Bauleni’s operation. These shops not only provide vocational skills to those participating in them, they also provide possibilities for sustainable, job skills training programs for all of Zambia.
We will be doing a training tomorrow with the self- and parent-advocacy group from Chawama, who will be coming to Bauleni. I know this group is of particular interest to many of you in Minnesota, so we will do our best to get an update to you on how the group is doing as soon as possible.
Update after first training: We had a four hour training with the Chawama advocacy group today here at Bauleni. Topics included inclusion, creating valued social roles, generating employment (including microenterprise), and taking community approaches to health and wellness. The training included a lot of lecture but also incorporated some discussion. There were many stories that were presented by attendees to assist the group and the presenters (us) to better understand concepts and put the ideas into context. Mikela served as interpreter, as about 75% of the group today was brand new to the advocacy group from Chawama. Training went very well, but the conversation following was the really encouraging part.
There was some split between the more established members, who seem to understand the need for self-sustainability, and the new members who were eager for external financial support. The group seems to be in the position of needing to work out the balance for what can happen immediately and what should be seen as long-term goals. There are some strong emerging leaders in this group, and today seemed to be a breakthrough for those three or four strong members to raise their voices to begin taking the group towards a stronger, more focused mission. The debate today raised a commitment for the group to meet next week to start working towards that mission, perhaps with new members on board. This, we think is a very encouraging development for the Chawama group and for the start of our formal work here.
We’re heading out of the Bauleni gates for a while to try to find internet to get this posted. Just thought many of you in Minnesota who have had interaction with the Chawama group in the past would like to hear this encouraging news from today’s meeting.
-Matt

Just hours away

In just a matter of hours now, Derek Nord, Kristin Hamre, and Matt Bogenschutz from the University of Minnesota will be arriving in Zambia to join in the work of the Twin Cities-Zambia Disability Connection. To our colleagues in Minnesota, we are so very grateful for all of your support and advice leading to our point of departure. To our colleagues in Zambia, we look forward to meeting you soon to work, live, travel, and learn with you, and to share what we can to assist people with disabilities around the country. We look forward to getting our experience underway, and to meeting you very soon. With best regards.
-Matt

Young Voices: Bringing the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities to Life

From the young voices website: Young Voices is a project of the Leonard Cheshire Disability Global Alliance.

It brings together groups of young people with disabilities from 18 different countries around the world. It gives an opportunity for them to share their experiences, learn about the UN Convention and their human rights. It gives them training in campaigning, advocacy and media skills to help them hold their governments to their obligations under the UN Convention.

The original idea for the Young Voices project came from discussions with groups of young people with disabilities, NGOs and development agencies in West Africa. These highlighted that young disabled people were a neglected group whose voices were rarely heard.

Starting with a pilot project in 2005, Leonard Cheshire Disability worked through local partners to support groups of young people with disabilities in twelve countries. This covered the last two years of the development of the Convention. As these young people became knowledgeable about the Convention, they began to understand how to use their voices to influence policy.

A highlight for participants in the early years of the project was the opportunity to attend the ad-hoc committee of the UN in New York, where they organised a side event. Their passion and enthusiasm reminded everybody deep in negotiations that the rights of millions of people around the world were at stake.

Three years on, groups of young people with disabilities have been formed or are being developed in the following 18 countries: Liberia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Namibia, Swaziland, Botswana, Kenya, Uganda, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, China, Guyana, South Africa, Mauritius, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia and the Philippines. A network of effective advocates working closely with disabled people’s organisations and others in civil society has come to life.

During 2008 and 2009 the groups have been telling their stories through film. You can view some of their films on this site now and others will follow shortly.

Updates from Zambia

Tomorrow morning, a group of 14 youth and adults will be descending on Hidden Voice Special Needs school. They are representing my parish in Colorado, Our Lady of the Pines Catholic Church. They are on their first mission trip to Zambia and want to make a difference. So part of their mission trip is to work at street level and one of the projects is to complete some renovations and play with the kids at Hidden Voice. They are documenting their activities and posting blogs at http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/OLP/.

Follow their adventures. Some of the places they will visit include Hidden Voice and Bauleni Street Kids with Mikala. Sr Nama will also have them for a day at her school. One other place that they will be going is St Joseph's mission in Kalalushi...there is a deaf school on the mission grounds and it is run by the Sisters of St John the Baptists.

"Dead Aid" by Dambisa Moyo

Dambisa Moyo is a native of Zambia with advanced degrees in public policy and economics from Harvard and Africa and is about to publish a book called "Dead Aid" which takes an interesting view of the impact of aid to African countries. An interview with her was published in the New York Times Magazine yesterday. To read the entire interview, click here.

Update on Happenings in Zambia

Last night I had a delightful evening out with Mikala, Sr Nama and Grace Banda. It was fantastic getting caught up with these amazing women. A few days ago I had the absolute pleasure of touring Hidden Voice School with Sr Maura. As you know, Alice Kaunda is the managing person of the school. I have not been able to connect with her at this point. In addition, when I first arrived, as I mentioned to you on the phone, I had the great opportunity to meet with the newly formed self advocacy group at Chawama parish better known as Regina Pacis Catholic Church. Mikala was instrumental in making this very impressive meeting happen. In addition, I have had extensive chats with Fr Patrick Chisanga and Bro Joseph Ntumbila about what is ongoing through their groups. It has been quite impressive by any standard on all that is happening. I am extremely encouraged by the short term outcomes.

Here is just a sampling of the comings and goings...

Bro Joseph Ntumbila is seeking assistance for a young girl in the Copperbelt region. Her mother is single and must care for her at all times so is unable to work. There are no other family members that are identified. He is now in contact with Mikala and others from our trainings to find suitable accomondations for the young girl. It will be difficult at best but now that there is a 'team' environment, Bro Joseph can seek assistance from those who are more active in special needs...especially with direct service. I anticipate by the time I arrive back in the US around March 2nd, that this child will be placed and her mother can than seek employment.

The self advocacy group at Regina Pacis Catholic Church in Chawama is the first and only self advocacy group with special needs in operation in that particular compound...which holds a very high density population of over 50,000...some even estimate over 100,000 people. It meets regularly, about once a month and the group shares information with each other. With the assistance of Mikala and Sr Nama, negotiations are now continuing to find suitable classroom facilities for the first special needs classroom in the Chawama area. Grace Banda is working closely with Mikala and Sr Nama to find that place. At first we thought it might work well right at the church property...and it still might work well there...but for the short term, other sites are now being looked at for speed of delivery of special needs teachers which are paid for by the government. More on the success of finding a structure as time moves forward. The great news here is that these conversations are happening for the first time, networks are being created, infrastructure is being identified and the short and long term results are...families are beginning to have HOPE and encouraged by the interest shown to them. There is also a young friar who has shown some interest in this population and helping with the groups.

At Hidden Voice school, the first building has been renovated and now students are just beginning their classes. There are about 14 new students attending. They only have one teacher at the moment and she is not on government payroll. The school must first be registered which is in the works. It is the hope that this school will be grant aided and more teachers will come to teach as it grows. It is truly amazing what has transpired there. I will bring photos with me, too hard this time to upload from here.

My hope and dream now is that all the relationships that were begun just one year ago, especially with the not for profits in the US and the University of Minnesota's ICI department, that these relationships begin to flourish and stand on their own. The need for ongoing training is essential as is the need to fundraise to build more special needs schools...either integrated or stand alone...any is helpful. There are over 35 compounds with high density and exreme poverty. Many do not have any services or ability to have their children go to school.

With the Franciscan Conventual friars, they are in the midst of their Chapter which happens each 4 years. It is a time where they make their big 4 year plan. Part of their charism remains helping with special needs and disabilities so I am hopeful that this Chapter may make mention of it. If they do not, there is still hope with the new leadership in place, that continued participation and learning occur with this group. As you have stated and I still believe...the center of people's lives here and the influence of the Catholic Church and the local parishes can not be overstated.


Sandy

Recent News from Around the Continent

Here are a couple of recent news items from Africa:

From Ghana:
Inclusion Of Children With Disabilities In Regular Schools Is Good(click here to read article)

From Malawi:
People with disabilities facing discrimination in Malawi - activists (click here to read article)

ANDD Conference in Namibia

Self advocates from Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zanzibar, Zambia, and Zimbabwe came together for a one day forum as part of the 7th African Network for Development and Disabilities (ANDD) Conference being held in Namibia.

Click here to read more.

Making Your Church More Accessible

After returning from our trip to Zambia last September, Amy Hewitt set to work finding a few quick resources that church organizations in Zambia could use to help make their facilities more accessible. Here are links to some of the resources available on church and disability:

More Than 50 Ways to Make Your Church Accessible With Little or NO Cost Involved
Christian Reformed Church's resources on disability concerns