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January 05, 2010
Special Talent Exchange Program Newsletter
Winter 2009
Welcome to the winter edition of the STEP newsletter. Click on the links below to find out about the latest developments and stories.If you do not wish to receive this email, please write unsubscribe and send to office@step.org.pk
Detail Story(https://www.opendrive.com/files/5920181_37t3g/Leaders-Dec-2009.pdf)
National Leadership Conference of Persons with disabilities
12th -14th August 2009
A declaration calling for the ratification of United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) was endorsed at the National Leadership Conference for Persons with Disabilities. Held at the National Institute for Special Education (NISE) from 12-14 Aug 2009, the conference was organized by Special Talent Exchange Program (STEP) in partnership with Telenor Pakistan’s flagship corporate initiative “Khuddar Pakistan.” The conference witnessed an unprecedented attendance of 50 Disabled Persons Organizations, key leaders from the disability rights movement, state officials, disability advisors, volunteers as well as Telenor Pakistan management.
Wheel Chairs distributed among PWDs after the conference
Tricycles were distributed among 10 disabled participants with the help of Pakistan BaitulMal and of course the Managing Director Pakistan Bait ul Maal, Zamurd Khan who always supported us in our endeavors towards empowerment of the persons with disabilities.
Observance of White Cane Day & Launch of Video Documentary
“Beyond the Voice of Our Own”
The International White Cane Day 2009 held at Auditorium of Pakistan National Council of Arts was attended by about 500 people from all walks of life including representatives of disabled peoples organizations, development sector, government, universities and media.
A new Virtual Office
STEP has developed a new website http://www.step.org.pk/home with all the updated information about organization itself and other partner organizations. A network of DPOs from all over the country is visible on the website that is a great achievement by the STEP team. Various publications by STEP and other reading material is also uploaded on the website.
STEP joins "Facebook"
STEP has also developed a page on Facebook. All the latest updates about the events and news about the upcoming events can be viewed on this page. Furthermore, pictures and videos of all the events are also uploaded on the Facebook page.
Government announces special NICs for PWDs
New NICs for disabled persons have been issued by the government of Pakistan this year. This will help the persons with disability to avail some of the benefits that the state is offering for them in the form of discounts. Disabled persons can get 50% discount on their travel by train or by air simply by showing the ID card.
STEP as Disability Advisor to Telenor Pakistan
STEP is the first disability access audit firm in the country. We work with our clients to achieve the best and most cost effective solution in meeting their disability access needs. We performed the accessibility audit of the Central Headquarters of Telenor Pakistan in F-7 Islamabad. After the audit Telenor has made some major changes in the layout of their office which is now fully accessible for visually impaired persons as well as wheel chair users.
APCD mission on SBKM (Story Based Knowledge Management)
The "Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability" (APCD) Project is a technical cooperation project between the Government of Japan and the Government of Thailand, which is started in Bangkok on 1 August 2002. The Overall goal of the project is to promote the empowerment of people with disabilities and a barrier-free society in developing countries in the Asia and Pacific Region.
Training of Hearing and Visually Impaired Persons
The objective of the training was to reach a social as opposed to an individual model of disability, to demonstrate the practical application of equal opportunities policies for disabled people within the immediate area of work.
Inclusive Development Project in District Jehlum
The District Annual Review Workshop with Stakeholders was held in the last week of October 2009. The workshop was attended by the District Administration; partner CCBs, WOs, persons with disabilities and NGOs working in District Jhelum.
School by PWDs starts in Bangyal
The establishment of Bangyal Community School is a great achievement for STEP in a way that it is the first ever inclusive education school in Pakistan where all the normal as well as disabled students can get education. The school helps Rizwan and his sister to run their household. Furthermore, it also helps in the social uplift of the otherwise one of the most neglected villages of the country.
Editorial Message
STEP has been struggling for more than a decade to bring a change in the life of Persons With Disabilities. This issue of our Newsletter stands a witness to our unwitting commitment and utmost struggle in mainstreaming of PWDs in the society. We are thankful to all our partner organizations for their full support throughout these years.
We are always in the process of continuous improvement of our functions and services to the people. We believe in sharing knowledge and expertise with the people and organizations. With your help and support, we are now considered as one of the most delivering Disabled People’s Organization (DPO) of the country. We always look forward to your suggestions for further improvement.
Cheers!
“Leaders” Editorial Team
This newsletter has been issued with the support of Sight Savers International Pakistan
For more information visit our Website http://www.step.org.pk/
Posted by jicafriends at January 5, 2010 05:14 PM