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Ladies and gentlemen,
It is with great pleasure that I accepted the challenge of the President and the members of the Pancyprian Organization of the Blind to address your Annual General Assembly.
I congratulate your Organization and express my appreciation for its long-standing contribution to our fellow citizens with visual disabilities and for the rich work it carries out in all areas of their lives.
Undoubtedly, people with visual disabilities in Cyprus have the right to equal and active participation in the social life of our country. It is the obligation of the state to provide opportunities and tools for them to be active members of society.
Ensuring the rights of persons with disabilities and combating prejudice and discrimination is a priority of the Government. And this is highlighted through the First National Disability Strategy for 2018-2028, as well as through the three-year National Action Plans that bring together and reflect all the actions of all government services that serve, within their responsibilities, people with disabilities. The purpose of the actions promoted is to keep pace with current trends and practices in the approach to disability, taking into account the demands of the citizens directly concerned, within the framework of the capabilities and resources of the state.
To empower people with visual disabilities and facilitate their lives, extremely important resources are the monthly sponsorship of blind people who receive about 2.000 people, the monthly transport allowance, the disability allowance for recipients of the minimum guaranteed income, the home care grant, the car purchase grant, the grant for the purchase of technical aids and assistive technology equipment.
The empowerment of your organization to provide services to its members, complementing the role of the state, is also achieved through the grant of various programs.
The empowerment of your organization to provide services to its members, complementing the role of the state, is also achieved through the grant of various programs. The Pancyprian Organization of the Blind, through a grant from the Department of Social Integration of Persons with Disabilities, employs social escorts to serve the blind in all cities. Through these programmes benefit more than 750 members of your Organization, who, with the services of the escort, are facilitated and encouraged not only for services, but also for movement, activity, socialization, participation and integration in general.
For inclusion in employment, the Act on Recruitment of Persons with Disabilities in the Wider Public Sector has enabled dozens of people with visual impairments who were qualified to be appointed in the public sector. Opportunities for employment in the private sector have also been provided through the Incentive Schemes for Enterprises for Employment of Persons with Disabilities, as well as through the Small Units Grant Scheme for Self-Employment in any viable occupational sector.
In the field of social entrepreneurship, the Pancyprian Organization of the Blind is already leading the way by organizing training programs that inform and prepare people with visual disabilities to cultivate a culture of entrepreneurship, so that with the completion of the legal framework expected this year, they will be ready to join or establish their own social enterprises.
This initiative is in full synergy with the actions of the Department for Social Integration of Persons with Disabilities and the Special Fund of the Centre for Vocational Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities, through which an expert study is funded and underway to design vocational training and counselling tools that will empower persons with disabilities to join social entrepreneurship. The Government aims to create new jobs, which in combination with financial and other incentives and training and counselling services will provide a new framework of opportunities for the vocational rehabilitation of people with visual or other disabilities.
In the area of support for independent living, the Pancyprian Organization for the Blind operates an assisted living residence, providing supportive services of care, entertainment, accompaniment, psychological support and socialization.
In the area of support for independent living, the Pancyprian Organization for the Blind operates an assisted living residence, providing supportive services of care, entertainment, accompaniment, psychological support and socialization. The aim is the continuous development and progress of the residents, the enhancement of their social and other skills, their further education and development based on their talents and preferences, the improvement and maintenance of a high level of quality of life.
We continue towards the full integration of people with disabilities into society and the modernization of social protection policies, with new services such as Personal Assistant and Counsellor, based on the principles and values of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
In the Governance Programme we also seek to modernise existing legislation and adopt new legislation, such as on access to decision support services or support for independent living.
We look forward to constructive cooperation between government departments and organisations, which we consider valuable advisors. The opinion of the citizens directly concerned is the first to be taken into account for any state action.
In conclusion, I would like to congratulate once again the Pancyprian Organization of the Blind for its decisive role in protecting and defending the human and social rights of people with visual impairments, as well as in consolidating the real concept of equality and equal treatment.
In conclusion, I would like to congratulate once again the Pancyprian Organization of the Blind for its decisive role in protecting and defending the human and social rights of people with visual impairments, as well as in consolidating the real concept of equality and equal treatment.
I wish your Convention and your work every success.
Note.(The greeting was read on behalf of the President of the Republic by the Deputy Minister of Social Welfare, Mrs Marilena Evangelou)
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs PIO
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or PIO
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