National Council for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) Executive Director Harun Hassan has reiterated the need for persons with disabilities (PWDs) to acquire new-generation identification cards.
Speaking during the launch of project OPD Leadership, Engagement, and Development (OPDs LEAD) on Thursday at Kenya Institute of Special Education (KISE), the NCPWD Director said the revamped system will streamline operations at the council and ensure the government has enough information on persons with disabilities for the purpose of planning.
He observed that the previous system did not provide enough information for each member hence a challenge to the government.
“Our former system has no accurate information on the social economic status of the members, but the new system has information on members up to the grass root levels, i.e if you want to know the number of women who have wheelchairs in a certain ward you will be provided with,” he said.
Harun urged the OPDs to enhance PWDs registration awareness at the grassroots level and encourage more members to migrate to the new system.
According to the NCPWD boss, the card qualifies persons with disabilities to benefit from services, rights, and privileges stipulated by law such as tax exemption, education assistance, and assistive devices.
The director said registered persons with disabilities will be recognized across various divisions both in the public and private sectors to encourage their inclusion in activities that are geared towards achieving National Development goals and their human rights and dignity upheld.
The new registration system was launched last year by former Uhuru Kenyatta to deter fraud, enhance reporting structure for accountability, and also generate adequate socio-economic data for planning purposes.
The exercise done at the county level involves new disability assessment and categorization guidelines designed to standardize the disability assessment process across the country.
The process of getting the new registration cards is similar to the previous registration process. One will need a recent passport-sized photo, a dully filled registration form which can be accessed through NCPWD’s county offices, a copy of the national identity card or birth certificate, and a copy of their Disability Assessment Report from the government gazetted hospitals with the Director of Medical Services’ signature.