Mr Ayuba Gufwan, Executive Secretary, National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) says inaccurate data on Persons with Disabilities is affecting smooth implementation of the commission’s strategic plan.
Gufwan stated this on Monday in Abuja at a news conference to mark the 2024 International Day for Persons with Disabilities.
The event themed “Transformative Solutions for Disability-Inclusive Development in Nigeria’’ was organised by the commission in collaboration with Sightsavers Nigeria, The Leprosy Mission in Nigeria among others.
The executive secretary stressed the need for accurate information about the exact number of persons with disabilities.
According to him, the accurate data will assist the commission to effectively plan for the disability communities in the country.
“Presently, the NCPWD lacks specific data on the population of persons with disabilities in Nigeria, making it difficult to advocate for adequate support or targeted programmes.
“Accurate information on the number of men, women and children with disabilities, as well as their distribution across various disability clusters, will significantly enhance the commission’s capacity to support this community effectively.
“I recently met with the leadership of the National Population Commission (NPC) to address the absence of reliable data of persons with disabilities (PWDs) in Nigeria.
“The data, which will include breakdowns on gender, age, and disability type, is essential to budgeting, promoting meaningful inclusion, and developing policies tailored towards the needs of PWDs,’’ he said.
Gufwan commended the NPC for its readiness to deployed equipment and workers to capture members of the disability community across the country.
“I am happy to state that the NPC outlined its plans for an advanced, digital national census that will utilise over 760,000 tablets to capture comprehensive data, including information on PWDs.
“This digital approach aims to ensure precise, geo-tagged data across Nigeria, providing local-level insights that will support policies and interventions for persons with disabilities,’’ he said.
Gufwan said the commission’s collaboration with NPC marked a significant step towards closing the data gap, and positioning Nigeria to foster a more inclusive environment where PWDs can be recognized and supported. (NAN)
