Lagos -The Australian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Jonathan Richardson, on Thursday said that Australian government had so far spent about N119 million on the physically challenged women in Nigeria.
Richardson said in a statement by the Commission’s Research and Public Affairs Officer, Mr Okokon Odiongenyi, that the gesture was part of the government’s support for building a better future for Nigerians.
The statement said that the commission was working with Advocacy for Women With a Disability Initiative (AWWDI), a Nigerian NGO in reaching out to the beneficiaries.
“Australia is proud to help Nigeria’s efforts to empower and support people with disabilities and women with disabilities in particular.
“The funding has gone to helping women with disability to be given the same opportunities in life as anyone else.
“This includes assistance to receive quality healthcare, education, the ability to earn a living and to ensure they are treated with dignity.
“The 57 self-help groups for women with disability set up by AWWDI have now grown to more than 700 members across 18 states of Nigeria,’’ it said.
The statement expressed the high commissioner’s satisfaction with the success of the project so far in the benefiting states.
It said that it was imperative for people to have a change of mindset on how they have seen physically challenged women in their communities.
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“The key thing now is to “change people’s mindsets, so that they no longer see these women as a group of persons with disability, but rather as persons with ability.
“It is vital that all countries address stigmas attached to disability to enable people to realise their potential which will also benefit society as a whole,’’ it said. (NAN)