The Prison Fellowship of Zambia (PFZ) has donated over 80 Tricycles to persons with disabilities in Ndola.
Speaking at the handover ceremony held in Ndola at PFZ Head Office, the Zambia Agency for Persons with Disabilities (ZAPD) Director General Mr. Frankson Musukwa said the Agency remains open to partnerships aimed at developing and implementing measures that create equal opportunities for persons with disabilities as prescribed in the Persons with Disabilities Act No. 6 of 2012.
Mr. Musukwa said persons with disabilities face numerous barriers that limit access to assistive technologies that promote independent living, dignity and meaningful participation in social economic development, and that it is therefore gratifying for the Agency to witness stakeholders such as the PFZ come forward to bridge this gap of inequality.
The ZAPD Director General observed that without access to the physical environment, transportation, facilities and services provided to the public, persons with disabilities cannot have equal opportunities for participation in society.
Mr. Musukwa said it is only through generous gestures such as the donation by PFZ that persons with disabilities can live independently and enhance productivity.
He said the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) and the Persons with Disabilities Act No. 6 of 2012 acknowledge the instrumental role of assistive technology in enabling persons with disabilities to enjoy and exercise their rights and freedoms on an equal basis with others.
By Rachel Chako
ZAPD-Public Relations Officer