BY RODRICK DESURI
Auki
People with hearing disability in the country deserve to have access to information like able-bodied people in the country.
Project Officer and Interpreter, Lovelyn Kwaoga said information from the ministries, educational institutions, and cultural organisations is necessary for them to support their decision-making.
She said access to health and safety information is particularly important.
“Deaf people are like us, the able-bodied ones; they deserve to know and access all information from the ministries, such as health and education.
“In line with that, we shouldn’t treat them differently because of their disability. They are like us, and the only thing they lack is the ability to hear and speak,” she said.
Kwaoga said following a three-day training in Auki funded by Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) which concluded on July 1, they hope that provincial divisions, ministries, and stakeholders will try to address the needs of deaf people in accessing information.
She said one best way forward is to include sign language in the academic curriculum and to teach sign language to student-teachers studying at the Solomon Islands National University.
“When we include them in education at our school, they will learn how to read and access any information,” she said.
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