In organization of the National Coordinative Body for Implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy and the National Council of Disability Organizations in Macedonia, and in cooperation with the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) there was a formal session for observing 3 December, the International Day of Persons with Disabilities.
The formal session was held on 2.12.2022 at the formal hall in the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia, with the presence of the Prime Minister, Dimitar Kovacevski, the Minister of Labour and Social Policy, Jovana Trencevska, the Minister of Health, Bekim Sali, the UN Resident Coordinator Rossana Dudziak, the Director of the German Society for International Cooperation, David Oberhuber, the President of the National Council of Disability Organizations in Macedonia, Cedomir Trajkovski and other stakeholders in the disability area in our country.
The Prime Minister emphasized: “I am glad that today’s observance is dedicated to promoting the vision and priorities of the new National Strategy for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2023 – 2030. When investing in strategies and policies on multiple levels, we present our fight against stigma, against discrimination and we are a reminder and inspiration to every individual that persons with disabilities have their rights as any other citizen and child, as any other young person in this country.
I would like to use this occasion and to appeal to all ministers in the Government to actively participate in the further development of the strategy, i.e., in the creation of the action plan. At the same time, the activities that will arise from the Strategy have to be put high on the agenda, which will secure their dynamic implementation. If we only have a strategy, without its implementation, then there will not be any results.
Persons with disability must be included in the decisions that affect them. UN recommendations clearly call for constructive dialogue with their representative organizations. Therefore, as a government we have demonstrated many times that the civil organizations, the non-Governmental sector are our partners in creating policies, strategies and in decision-making processes.
The past few years have been full of challenges. The pandemic, the economic and energy crisis, they have all contributed towards changes in our lives and functioning. We have all, regardless of who we are and where we come from, felt the consequences. But persons with disabilities and their families were especially exposed.
Therefore, I advocated that they should not be left out of the anti-crisis measures. That is why, in the package of anti-crisis measures, we provided financial support to socially vulnerable categories of citizens, where persons who exercise the right to a disability allowance, further, parents of children with disabilities up to 26 years of age, and persons with disability that exercise the right to an allowance for help and care from another person receive financial support of 3000 denars each.
Respected, the Republic of North Macedonia, we as a government, in the past few years, are committed to respecting the diversity, providing equality and equal opportunities, to social justice and inclusion of all concerned stakeholders in decision-making processes that affect them. We are strongly committed to society cohesion.
We are absolutely aiming towards society that respects all its citizens, the one that makes efforts to respond to the needs, and to include everyone in all spheres of the society life. Thus, one of our priorities is to provide equal opportunities and inclusion of persons with disability in our society.
I shall say once more, I often tell that no one will be left behind, and I really mean it, since it is my principle of work. This is not a time of abundance, this is a time of solidarity, time when we need to help those who need it most. This country should be a home for all, should provide conditions for everyone. Persons with disabilities are our fellow citizens and have the right to equal opportunities for development, have the right to be included in all processes. Therefore today, when we observe this International Day of Persons with Disabilities, I assure you that this Government and I personally, will do everything in our power to systematically resolve the problems and all together we shall provide better standard, better life, better tomorrow for all citizens”, emphasizes the Prime Minister Kovacevski.
The Minister of Labour and Social Policy, Jovana Trencevska, said: “We are accomplishing our efforts for a society for all, for equal rights and opportunities for all our citizens and we reaffirm the value of inclusion as our highest goal. By developing the National Strategy on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities we act and demonstrate that we should not be afraid of diversity, on the contrary, it is something that we need to learn and accept. Differences are strengthening our democratic society and we should provide equal conditions and equal possibilities for all citizens, without exception”.
She stressed that the idea of inclusion, for the Government and for the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, is possible and achievable goal. The Minister pointed out that developing the human capital is a key roadmap for providing social security, fight against poverty, child protection and development and advancement of social services.
“Led by the premise of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities “Nothing about us, without us”, the National Strategy is being developed according to the principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and is complementary to the European Strategy on the Rights of Persons with Disability, based on data and analyses on the current situation about respecting and realizing the rights of persons with disabilities”, said Trencevska.
“Our goal is to reform the old and open new departments in the health centres for diagnosing and interventions in order to follow the child development from earliest age. Out of ten professional bodies that are planned, so far, we have opened two in Skopje, one in Bitola, Gostivar i Strumica, while the preparations for opening them in Stip, Ohrid, Veles, Kumanovo i Pehcevo are almost done. So far, over 2000 assessments have been realized, and at the same time we started making the control assessments”, said the Minister of Health, Bekim Sali.
The presentation of the President of the Republic Centre – PORAKA and President of the National Council of Disability Organizations in Macedonia, Cedomir Trajkovski follows.
This year’s topic for observing 3 December, the International Day of Persons with Disabilities “Transformative solutions for inclusive development: the role of innovation in fuelling an accessible and equitable world” clearly indicates that there is a need of changing the approach through which states around the world treat the rights of persons with disabilities. We live in a situation of complex, interconnected global crisis that largely affect the lives of us all, including persons with disabilities. Therefore, we need innovative and inclusive approaches and solutions, which will guarantee that the rights of persons with disabilities are equally important and taken in consideration while creating and planning public policies.
These approaches should always be based on the cooperation between the decision makers and persons with disabilities and their representative organizations, which is one of the basic postulates of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (ratified by our country in 2011). Only through cooperation and dialogue, we as representatives of persons with disabilities shall be able to fulfil our mission – to indicate, contribute and realise improved rights for all persons with disabilities. Thus, it is necessary to establish continuous communication and cooperation between the Government and DPOs, which unfortunately is not always as we expect it to be.
The National Council of Disability Organizations in Macedonia, with its 7 member – national organizations of persons with different types of disability, is involved in every important initiative, while creating legislation and strategic documents that refer to the rights of persons with disabilities, as a partner to the state.
And we expect a lot, because the situation in which children, women and persons with disability live should be improved immediately. In a situation of economic and energy crisis, it is of utmost importance that we provide adequate standard of living for all persons with disabilities, in accordance with Article 28 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Yes, the new anti-crisis measures that were provided by the Governments through the Law for financial support of socially vulnerable categories of citizens for tackling the energy crisis, include persons with disability, and that is very welcomed. However, a long-term systematic solution is needed to ensure that every person with disability is supported by the social protection system in order to have a decent standard of living. Therefore, a serious revision is necessary as well as assessment of the efficiency regarding the social protection benefits and their increase, according to the real costs of living and the costs resulting from disability.
I will present several priority areas in which immediate actions are needed:
- Full implementation of the legal framework against discrimination of persons with disability is needed.
- In relation to accessibility, it is necessary to follow, to adequately implement the existing legal regulations and the norms for space planning and designing the facilities so that they will be accessible to persons with disabilities of every age group.
- Providing access to information for persons with disabilities in accessible formats: sign language, audio formats, Braille, easy-to-read and easy-to-understand format for persons with intellectual disabilities, etc.
- Full implementation of the Law on Sign language, i.e., providing sign language interpreters and starting the process of Standardisation of the Macedonian sign language, as well as granting the necessary funds by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy for quality implementation of the process.
- The primary priority is ensuring free health care and protection, medical treatments, and medications for all persons with disabilities, without limiting the age of 26 years. When needed, the family doctor of the patient with disability should recommend accompany person during hospitalization, without age limit, in order to successfully provide the necessary health care.
- Provision of more sophisticated orthopaedic aids that shall provide functioning and inclusion of persons with disabilities in everyday activities.
- It is crucially to develop services, programmes and prevention services, early detection, diagnosis, and early childhood intervention, while detecting atypical development of new-borns, but also following, treatment and rehabilitation.
- It is necessary to ensure continuity and stability of the deinstitutionalisation process and effective transformation of large residential institutions by implementing the developed transformation plans.
- Providing sustainability of the existing support services, improving their quality, as well as creating new support services, according to the real needs assessment of persons with disabilities and their families.
- Strengthening the decentralisation and the role of the Local Self-Government Units in the reform of the social protection system and providing community-based services through sustainable funding.
- Providing the necessary material, financial, infrastructural, human resources for full implementation of the positive legal framework on inclusive education and leaving the current practice of segregating pupils with disabilities in segregated educational surroundings.
- Consisted introduction of the supported employment model for persons with disabilities in the new legal framework and gradual abandonment of the sheltered employment model.
- Introducing the quote system for employment of persons with disabilities in the public administration and in the open labour market, which shall allow their inclusion in mainstream society life.
- Changing the legal capacity system and introducing the supported decision-making system.
We hope that the new National Strategy for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2023 – 2030 will offer serious solutions for all these issues and challenges. We believe that the document of the new Strategy presented today has the potential to achieve the foreseen vision, because the goals in the strategy are sufficiently and widely set in order to include numerous priority actions. Nonetheless, learned from previous experiences, in order for that to happen, it is necessary to develop concrete, feasible measures and activities, based on real perceptions of needs and to form solutions that will be designed in cooperation with organization of persons with disabilities, according to our motto “Nothing about Us – Without Us”.
Only such a strategic framework, accompanied by strong political will, a coordinated intersectoral approach and a secured budget for implementation, can lead to substantial positive changes in the lives of persons with disabilities in our country.
