MoU signed for children living with disabilities |21 November 2019

The signing of the MoU: (l to r) Mr Matombe, Mr Simeon and PS Decommarmond (Photo: Thomas Meriton)

Representatives from the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development and the National Council for the Disabled will be allowed to visit and give training to all personnel in public and private schools and other institutions that fall under the responsibility of the ministry.

This follows the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) yesterday afternoon by the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development, the National Council for Children (NCC) and the National Council for the Disabled at the Seychelles Institute of Teacher Education (Site) auditorium.

Present were the Minister for Education and Human Resource Development Jeanne Simeon, Minister for Family Affairs Mitcy Larue, principal secretary for early childhood, primary and secondary education Odile Decommarmond, Ambassador Dr Erna Athanasius who is also the chairperson for the NCC, Attorney General Frank Ally, invited guests and students.

“The MoU will make it official for representatives from the Ministry of Education and the National Council for the Disabled to visit schools and give training to all personnel in public and private schools and other institutions that fall under the responsibility of the ministry of education,” said Sharon Meriton-Jean, public relations and communications manager for NCC.

The training will touch every aspects of the rights of children as well as the rights of people living with a disability and this training will go for three years starting from January 2020.

“The Ministry of Education has already opened its doors to us but this is just making it official, the council for the disabled has a special convention that addresses children with disability and we feel that they are not being addressed through the work that NCC is doing which is why we have brought them on board and they will be assisting us throughout the three years,” added Mrs Meriton-Jean.

On his part, NCC chief executive Jean-Claude Matombé noted in his opening address that all parents should be aware that it has been 30 years since the signing of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989.

The MoU was signed by PS Decommarmond, Mr Matombe and Marcus Simeon, chief executive of the agency for social protection and chairperson of the National Council for the Disabled.

Christophe Zialor