By Tina Ashiyo

World Health Organisation (WHO) officials in the two English speaking regions have put smiles on the faces of persons with disabilities (PWDs) from different communities in the North West Region with the donation of more than 100 assistive devices to facilitate their wellbeing. The CBC Health Services Disability Inclusive Humanitarian Action (DIHA) Project facilitated the distribution exercise at the Baptist Center, Nkwen on October 13, 2022.

The CBC Health Services has a long-standing history in disability work and she is championing disability inclusive humanitarian response within the context of the crisis in the region through the DIHA project. The project has trained national and international humanitarian organisations, a platform that attracted officials of WHO to contact them to mobilise persons with disabilities in need of assistive devices to turn out for the event.

Speaking during the distribution ceremony, the WHO Field and Health Cluster Coordinator for the Northwest and Southwest Regions, Dr. Aliyou Moustapha Chandini said the aim of the distribution was to improve the quality of their lives as part of the mandate of WHO.

Speaking on behalf of the CBC Health Services Coordinator for Services for Persons with Disabilities, the CBC Health Services Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) Supervisor, Mr. Kenchi Joseph welcomed and thanked the WHO team for the devices. He said the importance of these devices for the wellbeing and safety and security of persons with disabilities within the context of the ongoing crisis cannot be over emphasized.

Also present during the donation event was the OCHA Humanitarian Affairs Officer, Loveline Ameck who thanked the CBC Health Services for enabling WHO support persons with disabilities. She noted that without this support, WHO would not have been able to identify and have space to bring persons with disabilities together for the event.

The devices included 65 crutches, 20 wheel chairs, and more than 40 white canes.

It should be noted that the DIHA Project is funded by the German Federal Foreign Office through CBM and is co implemented in the North West Region by the CBC Health Services and the CBM Country Office Humanitarian team.