building the capacity of people with disability · building the capacity of people with disability...

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BUILDING THE CAPACITY OF

PEOPLE WITH DISABILITY

IN NORTHERN UGANDA

TO ACCESS THEIR LIVELIHOODS

A Handbook for

Disability Advocates and Practitioners

Compiled by

Chintha Munasinghe

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© APT Enterprise Development, UK National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda (NUDIPU)

Research Team:

Lorraine Wapling, UK, Lead Evaluator [2008], NUDIPU/APT BDS Support Project, Uganda Chintha Munasinghe, Sri Lanka, Co-evaluator [2008], NUDIPU/APT BDS Support Project, Uganda Andy Jeans, Chief Executive, APT Enterprise Development, UK Kevan Moll, Programme Manager – APT Enterprise Development, UK Sebuliba Michael, Executive Director – NUDIPU, Uganda Julius Wabwire, Project Coordinator (BDS/APT) – NUDIPU, Uganda Kagona Alex, Policy Analyst/ Project Officer (BDS/APT) – NUDIPU, Uganda Ruth Nakamanyisa, Project Officer (BDS/APT) – NUDIPU, Uganda

Production Team:

Language Editing: Sharni Jayawadene Page Setting: Laymen’s Den Pvt. Ltd. Cover Design & Illustrations: Dharshana Karunathilake Publishers: APT Enterprise Development, UK/ DFID

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CONTENTS Page No. Preface 2 Introduction 3 About This Handbook 5 PART A: Sensitisation and Advocacy Model 7

Level 1: People with disabilities excluded at family and community level activities Level 2: Community level self-help group formation Level 3 -5: Role of DPOs advocating the rights of people with disabilities

PART B: Enterprise Based Training Model 12 Level 1: People with disabilities getting mobilised to access livelihoods Level 2: Stakeholders ready to include people with disabilities Level 3: People with disabilities in Enterprise Based Training (EBT) Level 4: People with disabilities ready to apply their learning Level 5: People with disabilities entering into Small Business World

PART C: Material for Mobilisation 27 Games and exercises Participatory consultation techniques Case studies

Contact Information NUDIPU and APT Enterprise Development, UK 36

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PREFACE

It is estimated that about 10% of the world’s population are women, men and children with disabilities and yet, 20% of the world’s poorest people are disabled. This means that people with disabilities are more likely to live in poverty than non-disabled people. For many people with disabilities, the social consequences of having an impairment are severe. Marginalised or excluded from life events, opportunities and other basic human rights, people with disabilities are less likely to benefit from an education, less likely to receive training, less likely to get a job, and less likely to access credit with which to start their own business. Limited ability to earn money and contribute to household income means that people with disabilities are often viewed as a burden on their families and communities, less respected by others, and have low self-esteem. As a result, a person with disability is less likely to be married, less likely to be consulted on family and community decisions, and less likely to participate in family and community events.

The economic consequences of over 80% of disabled people not working have a similarly negative impact upon the individual, their family, community, and society. Can we really afford to ignore the productive potential of 10% of our populations, particularly at a time when HIV/AIDS is ravaging the most productive sections of many of these same societies?

This “how to” manual is intended to be a practical handbook for organisations working in the disability movement, disability sector and livelihoods sector on how to build the capacity of people with disabilities and enable them to develop and secure their own livelihood, so that they are socially recognised, culturally accepted and included in community actions as productive members. It provides practical information on the processes and activities developed by NUDIPU - partnership with DPOs, sensitisation, advocacy and enterprise-based training - to achieve this goal. By documenting and sharing our experiences at a practical level, NUDIPU and APT hope that this manual can encourage and support other organisations to ensure that people with disabilities have the same access to training, livelihoods, and microfinance opportunities as everyone else. We hope that you find this helpful.

Kevan Moll Programme Manager APT Enterprise Development, UK

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Hi friends!

One day it struck me that every day I was growing older but with not

much change to be seen in my village. I don’t mean our country is not

developing. Of course, there are many buildings and facilities in the

towns, making some people busy while government and non-government

organisations continue to introduce development programmes to

improve the livelihoods of poor people.

I observed small groups of women and men getting together holding meetings under trees

or just outside their huts and helping each other in their fields. Then there were officers

coming to see them. I watched and sometimes participated in those community meetings as

well. But, never in my life until recently, had I seen people with disabilities included in

those programmes. In fact, it never occurred to me that they should be included.

Why?

A decade ago, my understanding about disability was that, it made a person “crippled,”

“dumb” or “blind.” So, what were the benefits they could gain, even if they were included?

Like many others, I felt it was not worth investing in them. Even the majority of people

with disabilities and their families believed the same.

The disability movement slowly started moving into our little villages some years ago.

Slowly, it started making people with disabilities and their families aware of the

possibilities of rehabilitation. From rehabilitation, these organisations working with people

with disabilities, moved onto strengthening them to advocate for their rights. As a result,

they organised themselves and formed their own organisations, which later formed unions

to stand for their rights. Our country’s disability-friendly policy environment is a result of

their efforts. People were proud of themselves and they wrote on the walls: “Disability is

not an Inability!” They voiced their unity: “Nothing for us – without us.” Yet, in reality,

when it comes to development programmes, not many are included.

In 2005, people with disabilities in a few districts of Uganda got an opportunity to prove

their capabilities in earning their own income through enterprise-based training. We

thought it would be a failure. But, to our surprise, many who joined that programme

managed to run their own enterprise, while taking up responsibility for their families. It

was a great change that made everyone like me proven to be wrong in what we believed so

far!

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Having listened to me, are you interested in:

• Learning how to bring about a positive change to the lives of people with

disabilities?

• Helping a disadvantaged group of your own community to become

economically independent?

• Taking the lead in including people with disabilities in development

programmes?

THE BACKGROUND: NUDIPU (National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda) is the national umbrella organisation of Disabled People’s Organisations in Uganda. With representation in 56 districts and almost 1,000 sub-counties, NUDIPU have a national presence and are generally recognised as the national disability movement in Uganda. APT Enterprise Development is a British NGO that addresses the poverty of marginalised and vulnerable people in Africa and Asia by working with our partners to improve opportunities for employment and increased income through the development of micro and small enterprises. APT believes that pro-poor enterprise development enables disadvantaged people to build their own capacity to earn a living, improve their quality of life, participate more fully in society, and address the root causes of their poverty for themselves. In 2000, NUDIPU and APT joined forces to implement a DFID-funded project designed to demonstrate that disabled people are trainable, employable, and capable of running their own businesses and borrowing and repaying loans. The purpose of the original pilot project (2000-04) and the follow up Business Development Support (BDS) project that ran from 2004 to 2008 in six districts of northern Uganda was to generate evidence with which to persuade, convince and encourage other organisations (government and NGOs) working on livelihoods issues, enterprise development and microfinance to include disabled people within their programmes. Part of this process was to document how NUDIPU managed to get over 400 disabled people trained - mainly within existing small businesses - and 250 of these into employment and self-employment, thereby inspiring other disabled people to consider and take up training and employment.

Before that I

am interested

in learning

about the

actors behind

this change

Alright, then

let’s start

the journey

of CHANGE!

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ABOUT THIS HANDBOOK

This handbook is organised around the approach “Building The

Capacity of People with Disabilities in Northern Uganda to

Access Their Livelihoods” that NUDIPU and its member Unions

developed during their pilot intervention popularly known as “BDS –

Business Development Support Project - with the expertise on

Business Development offered by APT.

For people with disabilities, considered by many people as non-productive, unskilled

burdens to the family with many discouraging factors affecting their lives, starting to

earn an income may be an unachievable dream. Uganda being a country with policies which

are in many ways favourable to people with disabilities, and with a strong disability

movement that for years sensitised the nation on disability issues and the need for

respecting their rights, getting people with disabilities to use capacity building

opportunities to access their livelihoods was not difficult. In countries where the policy

environment and awareness among people with disabilities and other stakeholders are

found to be weaker, there is a need for the mobilisation of disability groups to advocate

for their rights and sensitise society on disability rights issues, so that a favourable

policy and attitudinal environment will prevail, in favour of people with disabilities.

This handbook is presented in three parts:

• PART A: Sensitisation and Advocacy Model

• PART B: Enterprise Based Training (EBT) Model

• PART C: Material for Mobilisation and Advocacy

PART A: SENSITISATION AND ADVOCACY MODEL

• The process and points to consider

• A Framework to implement the Sensitisation and

Advocacy Model

PART B: THE ENTERPRISE BASED TRAINING (EBT) MODEL

• The Process and points to consider

• A Framework to implement the EBT Model

PART C: MATERIAL FOR MOBILISATION

• Exercises and Games

• Participatory consultation techniques

• Case studies (Role models)

Before we were involved in the project our families treated us with little or no respect. We were seen as being totally dependent and were not recognised as people. As soon as people started to see we could do things and support ourselves, their attitudes really changed. When you cannot buy your own clothes or take yourself to the hospital, no one respects you. With the project all of these things are now possible.

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WRITE DOWN HERE ANYTHING THAT COMES TO YOUR MIND

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PART A:

SENSITISATION AND

ADVOCACY MODEL

In a society where there are no mechanisms to sensitise people,

including those with disabilities and their families, it is obvious

that people with disabilities live in isolation, feeling excluded in

every instance of their lives, as a burden or a non-contributing

member of the family and the community. Amongst them are a

very few who have broken the “glass ceiling” to prove their

capabilities.

In such an environment, it is important to develop a sensitisation

programme on disability rights and the needs of people with

disabilities that will lead to the development of an advocacy

strategy to suit the situation and the capacity of people with

disabilities to take the lead.

Try answering these questions:

• Why the person is excluded?

• What are the difficulties that their family and the

community are facing?

• What should we do to overcome the problem, so that the

person will be able to participate in the activities at family-

and community level?

5) National Level Associations of People with Disabilities working

together

4) District Level Organisations of People

with Disabilities

3) Regional / Sub-county Level Organisations of People with Disabilities

2) Community level Self-Help Groups

1) People with Disabilities as excluded

individuals

The BDS project sensitisation work also enabled us as a district union to meet more people with disabilities and it has brought us closer together. There is now more opportunity for us to support each other in different ways so people with disabilities are not feeling so isolated. It has given the district union a new purpose and focus.

- Chairperson, Apac District Disability Union

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Level 1:

People with disability excluded at

family and community level activities Responses to these questions will give us an idea to work out a

practical approach to prepare the people with disabilities, their

families, and the community to be included in activities that suit

their needs and disabilities.

NUDIPU’s response to the above questions has helped develop

an approach to mobilise people with disabilities and sensitise

communities:

i) Community awareness programmes on disability and rights of

people with disabilities are conducted in villages for small groups

of community members, including community leaders, community

level workers, people with disabilities and their families.

Promotional material such as videos, pamphlets and banners, as

well as role models is used in these community meetings. By the

end of the programme, information about people with disabilities

is generated.

ii) Following the information received at the meetings,

members/staff of the Disabled People’s Organisations (DPOs)

visit the individuals, and their families to understand their

problems and needs of the people with disabilities.

iii) While making attempts to attending to the priority needs of the

people with disabilities, they encourage/ mobilise the person to

become a member of the

self-help groups of people

with disabilities. The

importance of getting

together to demand for

their rights is taught

through SHG activities and

sensitisation programmes

organised by DPOs.


together


with Disabilities




individuals

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Level 2:

Community level Self-Help Group (SHG)

formation

Under the leadership of active members with disabilities, small

groups are formed initially to discuss their problems at their

level. For these meetings the DPO representative (in many cases

it is the development worker employed by District Unions), also

participates to facilitate the meetings at the beginning. The

needs and talents of the members are identified at this level.

With the assistance from DPOs, the member groups gain

confidence and skills to run an SHG:

• Conducting group meetings

• Agenda preparation

• Chairing a meeting & facilitation + active participation

• Agree on decisions

• Taking notes and preparing minutes

• Maintaining an attendance register

• Mobilising savings and small credit assistance schemes

• Proposing and agreeing on ways to strengthen the groups

to help each other

• Managing a group fund

• Maintaining accounts books

• Handling credit delivery and repayment

• Approaching officials for obtaining services

• Acquiring information about services

• Correspondence/ building linkages and trust

• Lobbying for inclusion

• Using services effectively and genuinely

• In addition, Training programmes on Group Dynamics can also

be conducted by the project team or using external trainers


together


with Disabilities




individuals

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Refer Part III for Handouts with more

information

Level 3-5:

Role of DPOs in Advocating for the

Rights of People with disabilities

NUDIPU and its member DPOs and Unions at District and Sub-

county level, in addition to creating awareness on

disability rights and the need for addressing the

issues that people with disabilities are

challenged with, conducted many activities at

policy advocacy level. This has given wider

publicity on the need for inclusion of people

with disabilities in every aspect of the country’s

development. Some of the efforts were:

• Communal Attitude Changing Programmes

• Radio talk shows by people with disabilities as role models

• Dialogue meetings

• Courtesy calls to policy makers and other service providers

• Organising events and exchange visits

• Disability Advocates taking part as active politicians, to

influence government policies with some as representatives of

local government

• Media coverage – print and electronic media

• Information dissemination through pamphlets and brochures


together


with Disabilities




individuals

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NOTES

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ENTERPRISE BASED TRAINING

[EBT] MODEL

People with disabilities in Northern Uganda (and in many developing countries) have typically enjoyed less exposure to school, workplace, marketplace, family decision making than their able bodied peers. Due to this exclusion they have not often been seen by other community members or employers or service providers as productive or capable citizens. Thus EBT can provide opportunity for both a) the people with disabilities to learn more about the world of work in comparison to a training institution, which may have academic entry requirements that would exclude some of them, and b) for community members, employers, customers, etc., to see people with disabilities engaged in productive activity in existing businesses, rather than “hidden” in some specialist institution that highlights their impairment.

Enterprise Based Training (EBT) was designed to facilitate better inclusion of persons with disabilities in the community.

It was developed in consultation with persons with disabilities and other stakeholders, who practically work towards opening up opportunities for persons with disabilities to engage in a livelihood. The EBT model has been found more successful than training centres. It also addresses problems that have resulted from a welfare approach by stimulating the demand for support and services in terms of rights and obligations.

With the needs of persons with disabilities taken into account, the EBT model ensures the following:

• Organise apprenticeships to suit the interests and needs of persons with in places closer to their homes

• Organise short-term programmes on business management at places with accessibility closer to their localities

• Encourage them gaining work experience and exchange

• Support trainers/entrepreneurs to adopt their work place environment and tools to accommodate persons with disabilities

• Encourage families of persons with disabilities to contribute to the efforts for their family member such as bearing transport costs, paying part of the training fee, etc.,

EBT (or apprenticeship) is a method of training that has been proven to be very effective as an alternative to institution-based training for young-able-bodied people in many countries of the world. The advantages are considered to be particularly relevant to people with disabilities who have been excluded from mainstream education, participation in market transactions and the world of work.

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PART B:

ENTERPRISE BASED

TRAINING (EBT) MODEL

It took about 20 years to develop a

disability friendly policy environment in Uganda, with a lot of

efforts to sensitise the whole chain of actors, starting from

people with disabilities to policy makers involved in violating

disability rights knowingly or unknowingly. When NUDIPU

started this Business Development Support project, the

following issues were identified in some rural locations:

• Low self-esteem and dependency mentality of people

with disabilities and their families

• Negative attitudes of the community towards people

with disabilities

• Some people with disabilities having no understanding

about their rights and their capabilities

The EBT model, captured all the strengths that were built

through advocacy programmes, and helped the excluded

community of disabled members to walk away from

dependence towards interdependence through business

orientation:

T

h

EBT is an approach that made a noticeable change in the lives

of many people with disabilities in a shorter period at

different project locations in six selected districts of

northern Uganda. Let’s go through the process ourselves.

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5) Reaching the level of

Small Business Operation

4) Employment and Self-employment opportunities

3) Enterprise Based Training (EBT) for

people with disabilities

2) Preparing the livelihoods environment to accept people with

disabilities

1) Mobilising people with disabilities not engaged in livelihoods and their

families

“Some people with disabilities are better off now than the non-disabled – they are able to pay schools fees and present themselves in a respectable manner and communities respond to that. No matter what happens now with the project, this will continue – we will never go back to the situation we had before.”

- Lira beneficiary

Dependence Greater Self-Reliance Inclusion Help others

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Business is not something that everyone can do. To run a good

business, a person needs to be entrepreneurial. In our society

there are born entrepreneurs who have such qualities within

themselves to drive them towards operating a business.

Favourable conditions – wealth and assets, business

background in the family, demonstrations and role model for

motivation; knowledge and skills, market demand for

products/services, etc, - also encourage people to engage in

business ventures.

Those who do not fit into the categories described above may

require business development support to develop themselves

to run a business. Many districts in which NUDIPU and its

partners operate in Uganda are found to be not so favourable

to develop non-farm businesses, with fewer opportunities

available in the market. Thus, it is important to explore

employment opportunities and negotiate with employers for

including persons with disabilities in their workforce.

In such an environment, preparing people with disabilities to

access their livelihoods is a challenge where they have limited

choices to suit their requirements and skills. The EBT model

has been developed to overcome those challenges.

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disabilities


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Level 1:

People with disabilities getting

mobilised to access livelihoods

In an environment where people with disabilities know their

rights and their responsibilities, it is essential to help them

get their ideas into practice. There may be barriers that

discourage their initiatives. There may also be situations

where the disabled person hasn’t got any business idea or

the person and the family may not have the concern to help

make the person productive. In all these situations, you can

help them:

• Understand the benefits of involving in a livelihood

• Identify their skills and assets that could contribute

to their livelihoods

• Change negative attitudes that discourage them in

accessing their livelihoods

• Generate ideas based on their interests, capacity and

information/observations about different ventures.

• Identify the gaps where their capacity/skills need to

be improved

• Select the most appropriate option that suits their

capacity and capabilities

• Convert their idea into an operational plan of action,

leading to self-confidence towards independence

These seven ways of assistance, although they may look

simple, are actually a well-structured process of mobilisation,

which may require good preparation from your side. Before

approaching people with disabilities in your community, it is

always better to know the basic information about each

person.

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Refer Part III for Handouts with more information

If your organisation

already has membership

of people with disabilities,

their contact information

may already be available

with you. Thus you can

proceed with meeting

these members and

consult them. Not every person with disability in the village

participates at SHG meetings, due to different reasons, which

required to be taken into account, when planning such meetings:

• Hearing impaired persons may be left out, not having

received the message due to communications barriers

• Wheelchair users and visually impaired persons may have

mobility issues

• Family and community attitudes may have contributed to

exclusion of intellectually impaired persons

• Negative attitudes of people with

disabilities themselves and the

families

• Ensuring easy access through several

consultation meetings organised at

different meeting points in the village,

may increase participation, and there is

a need for organising sign language

interpreters as well.

• Home visits will avoid exclusion of persons with severe

disabilities from the consultation process.

• It is important to provide more space for the participants to

express their views, needs, problems and interests, with

facilitators listening actively. This process will also generate

recommendations from the community.

[Note: If your organisation has no people with disabilities as members

or included in your programmes, you may have to search for a DPO or

SHGs to collaborate in the process of consulting people with

disabilities.]

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4) Employment & Self-employment opportunities




disabilities


families

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Refer Part III for Handouts with more

information

Level 2:

Stakeholders ready to include


With people with disabilities in your area and their families

using different mechanisms to reach them, it is important

to analyse the data so that you will arrive at:

• Different sectors of enterprises that they are

interested in

• Skills of disabled participants and resources available

• Gaps – in skills, knowledge, resources etc, as perceived

by the people with disabilities and their families.

It is important to give priority to their

interests and needs when planning EBT

programmes for them. It is a challenge

sometimes to the organisations, to

match their interests and needs with

available resources in the area of

implementation. Yet, it is important to map

the resources in the area and proceed with assessment of

commitment, quality and reliability of potential service

providers. Thus, the steps followed by NUDIPU in preparing

livelihood environment are: • Stakeholder analysis based on the information available

with staff and members;

• Survey on businesses and service providers (who are

interested in working with people with disabilities in

business and technical training, market and micro-finance

assistance, etc.) operating in the area – a detailed study;

• Matching the service/product areas with the interests of

people with disabilities consulted – List of service

providers prepared;

• Dialogue meetings with selected service providers;

• Discuss and agree on terms & conditions to proceed with.

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Now you have two

types of lists: 1) a list of people with disabilities who are

interested in starting up a livelihood or improving existing

livelihoods, which are not running profitably; 2) a catalogue of

different stakeholders who are interested in working with

your organisation such as:

• Trainers

• Employers/Sub-contractors

• NGOs/INGOs and Government Development Programmes

• BDS providers: non-farm and agriculture sectors

• Community development workers

• Savings and Credit officers, etc.

• Policy makers

It is important to acquire the commitment and participation of

all these categories, with their technical expertise, to achieve

the purpose of your efforts.

• This can be started with a planning workshop with their

participation to develop a practical plan of service delivery

to help the disabled members of their community to

complete the journey of economic empowerment, i.e.

changing their status from dependence to independence,

which will lead to interdependence through inclusion.

• This type of stakeholder workshops for value addition, can

be organised annually or bi-annually (based on the

availability of resources) for effective implementation of

your programme.

• A programme management committee needs to be formed

to provide guidance and propose improvements in their

expert areas, for effective implementation.

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Level 3:

People with disabilities in

Enterprise Based Training (EBT)

Now you have a pool of trainers who are willing to provide

training/apprenticeships in their business sites. Many of

them not having experience in training people with

disabilities, it is important to assess the training sites for

their suitability to the disabled members. For instance, if

the training site for radio repair is located in a third floor

of a building with no elevator, a wheelchair user may not be

able to reach there. It is also important to assess how

user-friendly the working tools and work benches are.

These can be modified locally to suit specific disability

challenges.

Preparatory measures that should be taken care of, before

the introduction of disabled trainees are: • Negotiating with trainers the cost and duration of the

training programme that they offer

• Preparation and signing of a Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) including the training period and terms and conditions

agreed between the three parties, namely the trainer, the

trainee and the facilitating organisation

• Before signing the MoU with the trainer, the trainee

expresses his/her commitment or family contribution

towards the costs in relation to the training such as

travelling, meals during the programme.

NUDIPU has used two types of trainers – entrepreneurs

and vocational training centres (mainly technical training

with practical assignments) and BDS providers (business

skills and marketing training). When you complete the

stakeholder analysis, you will also notice these two

different categories. When technical training sites are

ready for accommodating our disabled trainees, then they

are informed to participate, through SHG meetings and

letters.

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The technical

training

programmes are

non-residential

and can be

conducted as

half-day or full-day sessions for a period of 3 – 6 months.

The period depends on the nature of skill to be learned, e.g.

repairing radios and televisions, beekeeping would take less

time compared to motor mechanics and tailoring. As far as

possible, it is better to identify training sites that are not

very far from the localities of the trainees, for easy access.

Practical training is ideal for hearing impaired trainees, with

the trainer taking time to demonstrate the techniques for

them to understand.

Considering the poor economic status of the trainees, it will

be good if your organisation could mobilise resources to pay

them a travel allowance. In some

cases, in addition to their fee, the

trainers are required to be

supplied with raw material for the

training, too.

Using entrepreneurs as Trainers:

This model is developed with the

assumption that entrepreneurs,

who know the art of their field,

will be able to transfer their

knowledge and business tactics to

their trainees through hands-on

experience - and it worked. In this

approach, the training fields must

be identified beforehand and an

assessment will help you estimate

the market demand as well.

Appreciating their service, you

could pay them either a training

fee or provide them with material

required for the training.

How to find resources?

If you look through the catalogue of stakeholders carefully, there are organisations who would be interested in financial collaborations, provided that your programme fits well with theirs. It is therefore, important to prepare a budget for the whole programme in consultation with the stakeholders involved, before starting the training. With the information you have already collected, you will be able to convince the donors to support your initiative.

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You can identify a variety of technical training choices

available to people with disabilities in the area, through

stakeholder analysis. Of them entrepreneurs interested

in training will determine the fields.

While people with disabilities continue their enterprise-

based practical training on technical know-how, e.g.

television/ radio repair, tailoring, bakery products,

carpentry, hair dressing, bicycle repair, shoe making,

vehicle repair, metal fabrication, knitting, NUDIPU and

its partners also organised business management

training programmes which may run in 2-5 day periods.

The professional trainers who conduct these

programmes could be selected from your team or you

could choose BDS organisations and micro-finance

organisations available in the project areas, which

provide services on a professional fee.

These kinds of programmes help the people with

disabilities to get an in-depth understanding about

general business environment, services and opportunities

available for entrepreneurs, marketing techniques,

business planning, accounting etc., Different training

modules are used by these professionals, and therefore

it is necessary to adapt those modules to suit the

requirements of the trainees with disabilities that you

are focusing on. For the training programmes where

classroom sessions are included, you may have to arrange

sign language interpreters if hearing impaired persons

are taking part. It is also important to get a feed back

from the participants at the end of each day. The

Debriefing meetings with trainers conducted by project

team will help improve the training programme.

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MICRO-FINANCE AND DISABILITY:

The Role of Advocates & Practitioners Disabled people’s access to credit is of major concern. Most Micro-Finance Institutions [MFIs] despite aiming to target the poorest and most vulnerable still hold highly discriminatory views about people with disabilities. Most MFIs do not like to take on people with disabilities because they assume they will not be able to pay back their loans on time (the assumption being they will not be able to earn sufficient amounts) and will have few assets of interest to the MFI.

Disabled people also find it hard to build up a credit history relevant to MFIs. Often people can build up credit histories by belonging to savings and credit groups. As the group continues to do well each member is able to build his/her rating. However disabled people are rarely included in credit and savings groups organised by MFIs, so they never get the chance to build credit histories and the exclusion continues. People with disabilities themselves have been reluctant to get involved with micro-credit because of the concern about how they may be treated by local MFIs.

Despite these ongoing problems NUDIPU did attempt to target some of the most influential credit providers in northern Uganda. Such attempts have enabled 64 of their members from Arua and Nebbi to receive micro-credit to the value of 5,700,00/-. These loans were given to 6 visually impaired, 3 deaf and 2 with learning impairments with the remaining 53 having physical impairments. A wide range of different commercial enterprises are being set up from petty trading to tailoring and farming, as a result of the loans. Increasing examples like these of successful disabled entrepreneurs should help overcome anxieties on both sides about the use micro-finance.

With EBT introduced to develop business and technical skills of people with disabilities to run good businesses, there is a need for building good partnerships with MFIs to support people with disabilities graduated from the training and ready to start-up their businesses. To build this partnerships, DPOs and organisations working with people with disabilities, need to

• consult MFIs in the area to identify the issues and concerns they have;

• create awareness and sensitise officials at decision making level on abilities of people with disabilities;

• share with them positive lessons and case studies on people with disabilities successfully run their businesses;

• discuss and agree collaborative actions to help them clear their doubts and concerns.

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Level 4:

People with

disabilities

ready to apply their learning

After graduating in the field of business and with

theoretical knowledge on business management, the trainees

need to practically apply their knowledge and skills in a

livelihood that they have selected. Some may be confident

enough to start their own business venture as a self-

employment or go into partnership with a friend or a family

member. This is the stage where BDS providers and micro-

finance institutions that you have identified, can be

involved. • BDS providers using business counselling techniques will be

able to help the recently graduated people with disabilities,

to develop a realistic business plan;

• Micro-finance programmes can help them initiate savings

and provide credit facilities, based on the business plan

produced.

• In your stakeholder list, there may also be government and

INGO programmes for livelihoods assistance, which can

also be involved in assisting graduated people with

disabilities interested in starting their own self-

employment.

The project Management Committee will be the best forum

to discuss and plan the Support Scheme for business

ventures initiated by those who have completed the

training. Some trainees may prefer to be employed as an

endeavour which is more secure, less risky and does not

require access to credit. Exploring employment

opportunities is required even among small enterprises in

the locality. In some instances, the technical trainer may

come forward to offer an employment opportunity after

apprenticeship.

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Level 5:

People with disabilities entering

into Small Business World

Operating for some years as self-employed or

employed under an entrepreneur, some graduates may

move into the small business sector, where they

expand their products/services range by:

• Re-investing their profits in their business

• Product/service diversification based on market

demand

• Acquiring higher loans

• Recruiting employees either full-time or part-time

• Opening up outlets in other geographical areas, etc.

Basically, at this level they are independent from BDS

providers/supporters who helped them to reach this

level. On the other hand, they will develop

“interdependence”, i.e. new business relationships such

as raw material suppliers, traders, brokers, employees,

etc.

In a highly competitive business world, one may think

that reaching this level for a disabled person is

unachievable. But the truth is there are born

entrepreneurs among the disabled community as well.

For them, providing business assistance to take up

business decisions would be more than enough to

“break the glass ceiling”.

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NOTES

30

WRITE DOWN HERE YOUR FEED BACK (Against What You Wrote in Page No.6)

31

PART C:

MATERIAL FOR MOBILISATION

This supplementary section will provide you with additional

information that would be useful in mobilising people with

disabilities, their families, and the community.

• Games: Understanding Context and Group Dynamics for SHG

Mobilisation

• Participatory Consultation Techniques

• Case Studies

32

GAME 1: UNDERSTANDING CONTEXT Handout 1

1) In the GREY blocks write all favourable conditions that support people with disabilities to exercise their rights.

2) In the blocks with the symbol write all unfavourable conditions that discourage their efforts in addressing their needs and satisfying their rights. Now you are ready to play the game with your team using a dice.

3) Ladders will take you up while arrows will pull you down.

GOAL

40 39

38 37

31

32 33 34 35 36

30

29 28 27 26 25

19

20 21 22 23 24

18

17 16 15

14

13

7

8 9

10

11 12

5

4 3 2 1

START

33

The following example will help you fill in the blanks before starting the game. This game can be introduced to SHGs who can play it and then discuss ways to get rid of barriers. You can also use this game during community awareness programmes as a tool to generate a discussion about the issues related to disability, the causes of those issues and the role they should play in addressing them at their level.

GOAL

40 39

38 37

31

32 33 34 35 36

30

29 28 27 26 25

19

Sympathy

leading to

Dependence

20 21 22 23 24

18

17 16 15

Lack of

opportunities

14

Disability

movement

active

13

7

Lack of

self-

confidence

8 9

No

Education

10

Favourable

Policy

Environment

11 12

5

Family

Support

4 3 2 1

START

34

GAME 2: UNDERSTANDING GROUP DYNAMICS Handout 2 Children represent the life and energy of any village around the world. It is very common to have children watching us inquisitively when we organise a community meeting. Children add colour to any occasion when they are involved. While giving energy to the meeting, these children can be involved as “performers” in interesting games that help people understand group dynamics. Here are three games that you could make them play, along with people with disabilities who would like to join the children.

LET’S GET THE BOTTLE FILLED! You need to organise the following before starting the game:

• 2 empty bottles with narrow necks

• 2 buckets of water/sand

• 2 teams – 4 members in a team

Team A Team B

1. Get the two teams to stand in two rows facing each other 2. Keep the water buckets at one corner of each row and the bottles on the other corner 3. Ask others who are not participating, to watch the actions of two teams carefully 4. Instructions to the participants: When the game starts, what the team members have to do is to fill the

bottle with water in the bucket. They can only use their hands to pass the water from one member to another and the fourth member has to fill the bottle. They cannot move around freely.

5. After giving instructions, give them about 5 minutes to discuss and plan. 6. Then give the indication to start the game. See how fast the water is getting filled. 7. Stop the game after 15 minutes.

After getting everyone settled talking, laughing, etc. you start the discussion. Compare the two bottles. Select the one that has more water. Ask the audience about the observations they made on the team that was able to pour more water into the bottle. They will come up with many responses such as how they plan, the unity of the team, consulting each other, helping each other, patience and not getting into a panic. Then ask about the weaknesses they observed too. Don’t forget to ask the two teams how they feel about the game. This discussion will come up with many ideas and facts that will help you convince the community to get into small groups to help each other. It will sometimes lead them to form self-help groups at that time itself.

Bucket Empty Bottle

35

GAME 3: UNDERSTANDING GROUP DYNAMICS Handout 3

SINKING SHIP

Children and persons with disabilities interested in taking part can join this game. You can also adapt this game to suit the needs of different disability categories as well.

Game rules: 1. Every person should concentrate on the game and not shout or speak loud, except the guide who conducts

the game from the centre. 2. All participants should listen to the commands from the guide. 3. Nobody should hurt another participant during the game.

Request everyone to stand in a circle and the guide stands at the centre of the circle. Then the instructor describes the game and reads the instructions out loudly:

“This game is called the sinking ship. The ship is sailing in the sea and gets caught in a storm. It hits on a rock and starts sinking. The ship has life boats which carry a certain number of people. If more people than the expected number get into the life boats, they get drowned because the load is too much. If a lesser number of people get into these boats, they get imbalanced and jerky. Therefore, it is important to gather together the exact number of people to get into a life boat. When I say ‘START’ everyone should walk fast on to your right side in the circle. Then I will warn you about the storm and about the rock when it hits the ship. Then I will say a number that is allowed for each life boat, and you have to hold hands with the participants making that number. If I say 8, then 8 persons should get together. Those who are not participating would help me identify the groups, which have either more members or less. They are dropped from the game and join as observers.”

You can do this game for a few minute, until a winning team is found. After giving them a good applause, it is important to start the discussion. First ask the participants about their feelings.

• How many have been pushed away to the water, by other team members?

• How many of them committed suicide so that their team survive?

• How many have been dragged from another group, so that their team survives?

• How many of them felt excluded or left-out?

• Who were the leaders in this game? You can compare the responses coming from them with real-life situation in group formation.

THE GUIDE

36

GAME 4: UNDERSTANDING DISABILITY

IN AN INCLUSIVE ENVIRONMENT Handout 4

DRIVING IN A TRAFFIC JAM

This game is used as an icebreaker and also used for getting people to know each other in a big gathering. Persons with disabilities, their family members and other community members can participate in this game.

1) Everyone is asked to find a partner.

2) One member becomes the driver and the other the steering wheel of the vehicle, whose eyes should be blind-folded. (If there are visually impaired persons in the group they can volunteer to become steering wheels).

3) The steering wheel should stand in front with the driver behind who holds the shoulders of the partner in front, i.e. the steering wheel.

a. When the driver pats the head of the wheel ONCE, the vehicle starts moving b. When the driver pats the right shoulder, the vehicle turns right c. When the driver pats the left shoulder the vehicle turns left d. When the driver pats the head of the wheel TWICE, the vehicle stops

4) The participants are allowed to drive their vehicles until they meet with an accident.

5) After the accident they are asked to talk to each other, and gather information about their partner: name, village, what they do, what they like the most, their skills, their talents etc.

6) When doing this exercise in a mixed group it is important to get their feelings when they were doing the game–

a. some are blind, and some blind-folded will have the same experience for a few minutes; b. some have to walk slowly to keep the pace with the partner who may be using clutches c. some may have got experience in handling a wheelchair in a busy environment

7) This exercise can explore many skills and talents of the persons with disabilities, especially when they are asked to introduce each other to the main group. To give colour and entertainment to the meeting or workshop, opportunities can be given to the participants for presenting their talents identified during this game, such as singing, dancing, miming, story telling.

37

EXERCISE 1: PARTICIPATORY CONSULTATION Handout 5

CONSULTING PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

AND THEIR FAMILIES AT HOME

This exercise is designed for field workers/volunteers to meet and consult persons with disabilities and their families during their home visits. It will help the field worker/volunteer to understand the feelings of a person with disability and the perceptions of his or her family members. It is quite common for a family who considers a person with disability as a burden to start the conversation discussing hardships, especially the economic hardships.

Step 1: Discuss the reasons for the economic hardships and the results/effects of those in relation to their family. [We call it Problem Tree]. It is always good to illustrate what they talk, so that they can visualise and keep concentrating on the discussion.

Step 2: Ask them: "who are the members contributing to the family economy?" Ask them to list out their names. [Never ask the amounts].

Step 3: Ask them who are the members not contributing to the family economy and why? Make a list there too. [This will give the field worker/volunteer an idea whether the person with disability is involved in helping the family or not].

Step 4: Discuss with the person with disability the ways that s/he can contribute to address the problems expressed in step 1, so that those who are earning income for the family can be supported. Then do the same with the family members to get their views on ideas proposed. List out the ideas they come up with and prioritise prioritise them according to the skills and resources available.

This is the occasion that the field worker/volunteer can provide the person with disability and the family with information about other people who were benefited from the work that they do. Interesting case studies, brochures, pictures, audio cassettes, etc., can be shared here, to motivate the person with disability and to get the commitment of the family. This exercise will generate baseline information on the participants and may lead to developing a livelihoods development plan for the person with disability in consultation with his/her family members.

38

CASE STUDIES Handout 6

SKILL THAT COUNTS! Jessica a youth with disability had acquired numerous skills like knitting, art and craft including secretarial work, but things had refused to add up. Her parents could not afford to address her needs and support her desire to stand on her own feet. The life was difficult.

One day she was invited at SODIPU1 to meet with a team from the BDS project of NUDIPU2. At the meeting, she became aware that this project would help her adding another skill, so that she can be employed. She preferred to learn about hair dressing and beauty culture. Subsequently she was placed at Fame Skyline Beauty Salon in Soroti. Within two months she learned the art, and the trainer offered her a job as a co-worker.

Today, Jessica earns a minimum of twenty thousands shillings per

day. She saves 50% of her income at Post bank Limited. She also

contributes to her family economy, thus reducing the burden on her

husband as well as supports her parents at their home. “Now I can

buy anything I like” she happily stated.

“IT IS NOT A HARD JOB”

Thomas the owner of THOD Electronics in Soroti,

had the opportunity to train Moses - a person with

disability. He admires the work and commitment

of Moses. “Training a person with disability is not

hard. They catch up quickly” he stated. “It is

because they put much concentration on the work

they are doing” The main challenge he met at the

beginning was providing lunch and transport to the

trainees. Interestingly, after they acquired skills,

even as apprentices they were able to make

money and stop being a burden to the business or

to the trainer. “Now, Moses can repair radios,

televisions, video decks and other music systems.

I am giving him a stipend but, more than that he

himself makes some money. He also contributes

to the power costs, rent and licensing fees on a

monthly basis. “

1 Soroti Disabled People’s Union. 2 National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda

39

SERVINGTHE PUBLIC WITH PRIDE!

A 25-year Emmanuel and his

family from Lira were displaced

by the LRA insurgence from

Omee parish of Amugu sub-

county in Moroto county Lira

district. They obtained

sanctuary in the displaced

camp of corner Dakatal

opposite Lira referral hospital.

His guardian Boniface Olipa

being a primary school teacher

far away in Bushenyi district

could not afford to provide for

the family of nine members. So

life for Emmanuel a young boy

with physical disability suffering

from a severely persistent

wound was miserable.

Through a radio programme on the local FM station Emmanuel and his uncle heard about the support that business

development services could provide in promoting his skills. When approached the project officer he placed

Emmanuel at Meko Artists and Designers to acquire skills in; sign writing, engraving, screen printing, logo designing,

painting and decoration for a period of six months as an apprentice.

After successfully finishing the apprenticeship, Emmanuel founded his own enterprise under an Acacia tree at the

coronation park opposite Lira market to provide his services to the general public. On average he is earning Shillings

7,000 per day. The responsibility of looking after the family has since then transferred on to his shoulders. He rents

house where he stays; pays school dues for his sibling brother; buys his clothes and now he has become a trainer

offering opportunity for another brother at his little work station.

40

For further information, please contact:

APT Enterprise Development 29 Northwick Business Centre Moreton-in-Marsh Gloucestershire GL56 9RF, UK Tel: + 44 (0) 1386 700130

email: [email protected] website: www.aptenterprise.co.uk

National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda Plot No. 530 Kisaasi Road – Bukoto P.O.Box 8567, Kampala, Uganda Tel: + 256 414 540178

email: [email protected]/[email protected] Website: www.nudipu.org.ug

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