The new department will advocate for persons with disabilities, ensuring their needs and rights are represented in government decision-making.
Dominica: The Government of Dominica has taken a step towards advancing inclusion and equality in the society as it plans to establish a Department for Persons with Disabilities to better address the needs and concerns of persons with disabilities in the country.
The decision to create this department was officially announced to the public earlier this month on July 14, through national media platforms, by Prime Minister Dr. Roosevelt Skerrit.
The Prime Minister made this announcement during his meeting with executives from the Dominica Association of Persons with Disabilities (DAPD), where he heard different concerns and hold key discussions with members in the association about issues affecting persons with disabilities.
Speaking to the committee members, Prime Minister Skerrit said, We’ll be creating a department for persons with disabilities within the government system so that there can be an internal advocate who will be able to sit at senior managers meetings and who can follow through on some of those recommendations, some of the actions, and the conventions that we need to take.
📎 TWITTER embed: https://x.com/SkerritR/status/2077721213221396574?s=20
According to the Prime Minister, the aim of the department will be to strengthen support and ensure greater inclusion and empowerment of the disabled persons, ensuring that the needs, rights, and voices of persons with disabilities are represented at the highest levels of government.
The aim of this department is to mainstream the issues confronting persons with disabilities, highlighted the Prime Minister.
Following his encounter with the DAPD committee, Prime Minister Skerrit took to Facebook to share picture highlights of the meeting, where he informed the citizens of this future-forward decision. PM Skerrit has reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to strengthening inclusion and ensuring that everyone is heard and well-advocated for.
On his post, he shared, “Our discussions focused on practical measures to strengthen inclusion and ensure their voices are reflected in national decision-making. Government will continue to work closely with the DAPD to advance meaningful reforms and build a society where every Dominican has the opportunity to participate fully and equally.”
Citizens of Dominica have taken to the comment section to praise this initiative, noting that it will better support persons with disabilities.