While government provides social protection programmes, access to social services by persons with disabilities is faced with challenges including communication barriers, societal negative attitudes, non-inclusive infrastructure, and limited understanding on how to implement inclusive social service provision. These gaps necessitated the need to promote capacity building for national officials to support disability and elderly inclusive social protection programmes.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) IRISH- Aid Social Protection project has been supporting the Government of Malawi through the Department of Elderly and Disability Affairs to enhance disability and elderly inclusive social protection programming.
The project supported the department to conduct awareness meetings at district level which culminated in establishment of disability and elderly district desk officers.
The ILO has supported the Government to development the training package for disability and elderly desk officers that was piloted in April 2024 among the first cohort of district disability and elderly desk officers at district level. The pilot training comprised 15 desk officers representing 15 districts.
One participant, Mr. Victor Pindikani, a senior assistant social welfare assistance officer in Nkhata bay district said: "Previously, I did not expect that I would acquire these skills, I had the knowledge but now the training has been marvellous, I intend to utilize my skills acquired beyond the expectation of my district council to ensure I include persons with disabilities and the elderly people."
Another participant, Ms. Prisca Zimba, a social welfare officer under Mbelwa district council stated: "The training has been very helpful, since I was appointed as Desk Officer I had little information about persons with disabilities. After going through various modules in this training this will improve my knowledge and will help me improve service delivery in my district and to continue working on inclusion of persons with disabilities in my district."
The roll out of the training programme is expected to improve delivery of services the older persons and people with disabilities.
Training of these desk officers will raise the profile and plight of the elderly and persons with disabilities which will contribute to government and other key stakeholders improving services for persons with disabilities.
Better services will contribute to promote the rights of the elderly and persons with disabilities, the right to access social services including and a decent life among others. The skills and knowledge acquired among district desk officers will also lead to better programming of elderly and disability inclusive social services.
The capacity building interventions are supported under the Regional Programme on Accelerating Achievement of Universal Social Protection to Leave No One Behind implemented with financial support from the Government of Ireland.
Participants engaged in an activity on intersectionality effects web to highlight the impact that marginalized identities present onto lives of Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) and the elderly. In particular, identities in focus were poverty, gender, disability, and aging.
During the training, participants engaged in active sessions on disability exclusivities and elimination of barriers to social services.
