Commentary
By Alberta Gbatima Bonney (Patewa), USA
I recently came across the Sierra Leone Policy on Radical Inclusion in Schools. As a current graduate student of Global Inclusion and Social Development I was immediately curious to read this policy. I asked myself, what is new? In the aftermath of the ten-year rebel war, I have seen several policies and Acts of Parliament, all of which are pointers to the fact that the country is taking strides to join the global push for equality, human rights, and development; at least on paper!
So, I took a closer look at the Radical Inclusion Policy and found that my area of academic focus was on one of the three main issues highlighted in it. Inclusion of people or children with disabilities on all levels of society is also a passion that I have, a passion born out of the fact that I live with someone who has a disability and work also with people with different types of disabilities and have seen the impact government and civil society actions have on the inclusion and improved support for people with disabilities
The National Policy on Radical Inclusion in Schools was drafted under the leadership of the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE) in collaboration with civil society organizations, non-governmental partners either focused on education or inclusion of specific groups in society.
According to Minister David Sengeh, ‘The policy particularly emphasizes the inclusion of historically marginalised groups: pregnant girls and parent learners, children with disabilities, children from rural and underserved areas, and children from low-income families….’
The marginalization of people with disabilities in Sierra Leone is not a new phenomenon, cultural barriers, stigmatization, and lack of political will from past governments are all contributing factors to the miserable plight of this population. Sierra Leone both signed and ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with disabilities, and thereafter an Act or Parliament established a Commission on Persons with Disabilities. There have been several studies carried out by different actors to highlight various issues affecting people with disabilities. Data from the National Population Census of 2015 indicated that out of 7,017,119 people in the country 93,129 have a disability, which represents 1.3 percent of the country’s total population. An alarming 67percent of these live in Rural areas, and it is a known fact that the rural areas are more underdeveloped, underserved, and mistreatment of people with disabilities is more likely to be higher in these areas (Kabia, Francis& Tarawally Umaru 2015). Keep in mind this and other data do not include those people who do not disclose their disability status for fear of stigmatization or access to appropriate evaluation or screening processes.
With all of this in mind, I think, it is a laudable venture for the Ministry of Basic Education together with its partners to have such a policy in place. However, there are key issues that have not been highlighted. Firstly, a lot of reference is made to only three kinds of disabilities, physical, visual, and hearing impairments. There needs to be a sufficient and concrete plan on how people with developmental and intellectual disabilities or mental health issues will be supported through this policy. Does the Ministry of Health have Mental Health Clinicians, or Applied Behaviour Analysts, Psychiatrists or to properly assess and diagnose the kind of disability a child or a person has in Sierra Leone? I ask this question not to disparage the Ministries or government undertaking this but to facilitate a discussion or a further analysis of the strategies or approaches that are going to be utilized to ensure the radical inclusion of children with disabilities has the maximum impact. Granted no one government or policy can address all the needs of people with disabilities, but if the impact of inclusion is to be sustained there must be collaboration on different levels.
The Radical Inclusion Policy for children with disabilities in Basic school is a good first step, what happens if they continue through to high school and then tertiary institutions? Do these have the necessary accessibility tools to facilitate learning for people with all disabilities not just the visually impaired, those in wheelchairs or hearing impairments? Have they considered employment opportunities for these and even out of school people living with disabilities? The thematic report on disability also indicated that out of the total number of people with disabilities only 1.8 percent were employed, and this was mostly in small scale agriculture. Given the pervasive nature of discrimination and unfavourable working conditions for people with disabilities, what concrete steps are being taken not just by the Disability Commission but other big employers to ensure a more inclusive environment for people not just in skilled labour but other more technical or ‘office’ jobs.
In conclusion I believe if we must as a country make the progress and impact that is worthy of global recognition, we must seek to take concrete steps looking at the suggestions raised here. The policy for Radical Inclusion in Schools is a necessary first step. Now let’s look at ways to make inclusivity a reality in all spheres of life particularly for people with disabilities in Sierra Leone.
About the Author
Alberta Gbatima Bonney (Patewa) is a Sierra Leonean and a Graduate of Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone and current Graduate Student at the University of Massachusetts, Boston. She moved to the United States about five years ago after many years of Human Rights work. She worked as Coordinator of the Anti-human Trafficking Unit of World Hope International (2004-2007), Focal point for Panos Institute West Africa Project on Human Rights and Communication (2008-2009) and moved briefly to Accra Ghana for a few years. On her return she worked as Campaign and Growth Officer of Amnesty International Sierra Leone (2013-2017)
She has always had a passion for equality and justice and continues her work even though on a different level in the United States. As every new immigrant in a foreign country, she has faced several challenges in terms of transferring her skills from her home country, but undeterred she has enrolled in Graduate School to position herself better to work both in the US but particularly in preparation to continue her advocacy work in Sierra Leone.
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