Disability Week to highlight education, work issues

The National Commission Persons with Disability has launched a programme of activities to mark Disability Week as the concluding event of the European Year of Persons with Disability.

The week will be held between November 29 and December 7 on the theme Inkomplu Flimkien (Let's Continue Working Together).

Among the main activities will be a half-day national conference on inclusive education and the need for every disabled student to have an individual educational programme.

The conference will provide a broad overview of the Ministry of Education's official policy in the sector, experiences of disabled students and their parents and the views of a panel of administrators.

The conference will be held on November 29 at the Westin Dragonara, in St Julian's.

A course entitled Speak Out will be aimed at helping disabled activists gain the skills to be in a better position to lead their organisations. The course will be held at the Waterfront Hotel, Gzira on December 1.

A research forum organised jointly by the commission and the Employment and Training Corporation will present the results of an ETC survey on the work, aspirations and experiences of persons with disability and a study by economist Gordon Cordina. The study addresses, among other issues, the relation of disability benefits to work.

The forum will be held at St James Cavalier, in Valletta on December 2.

Another activity is a Disabled Persons Parliament to be held at the Palace, in Valletta on December 2. Persons with disability will discuss with parliamentarians the way forward in the sector.

Other activities will include Holy Mass and an exhibition in Gozo.

The commission will also present the third edition of the findings of the National Survey of Disabled Persons based on the questionnaires filled in by its clients.