DOLE's inclusive growth strategy takes care of persons with disabilities

Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz yesterday said the administration of President Benigno S. Aquino III's goal of inclusive growth—which means that no Filipino citizen should be left behind with everyone getting a fair share of the fruits of development—includes a national strategy that takes into consideration the participation and contribution of persons with disabilities in the national development effort.

Speaking yesterday at the kick-off rites of the 34th Annual National Disability Prevention and Rehabilitation Week celebration, held at the Ichikawa Hall of the Occupational Safety and Health Center and attended by over 600 leaders of the PWD sector, representatives of various government agencies, private sector partners, and PWDs themselves, Baldoz said there is a great challenge today to ensure that PWDs genuinely feel what the government is doing for them in terms of guaranteeing their fundamental freedoms, social protection, employment, and not being discriminated against.

"Ang Pilipinas, na lumagda sa United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, ay tumutupad sa tratadong ito ng karapatang pantao at instrumento ng pag-unlad na nagbibigay ng pagkakataon sa sektor upang palakasin ang mga polisiya kaugnay sa mga napagkasunduang millennium development goals," said Baldoz in her speech.

"Hindi ito nalalayo sa hangarin ng kasalukuyang administrasyong Aquino III na inclusive growth. Sa paglago ng bansa, walang dapat maiiwan. Dalawang bagay ito: ang paglago ng bansa na nanggagaling sa paglago ng kabuuang pagkatao ng bawat mamamayan at sa paglagong ito, ang bawat mamamayan ay makikinabang," she added.

She recalled that since R.A. 7277, known as the Magna Carta for Disabled Persons, was amended in 2006 by R.A. 9442, the urgency has been greater to guarantee the basic rights, freedoms, and privileges of PWDs persons with disability that improve and enhance their social standing and dignity.

"Every individual person, with or without disability, is unique. In such uniqueness, there is a potential. And that potential should be fully or optimally developed," Baldoz said.

She lamented though that there are still PWDs not being given the opportunity to fully develop and utilize their abilities, thus, hindering realization of their full potential and effective social and economic participation on an equal basis with others.

"Thus, one of the goals of our week-long celebration is to raise the people's awareness on issues and problems faced by PWDs and to enlist public support for concrete efforts to better PWDs' economic and social conditions," she explained.

"Our aim is to galvanize further our advocacy efforts towards expanding and strengthening the rights of PWDs," she observed, as she emphasized that the DOLE, as a member of the National Council on Disability Affairs, does its share of implementing numerous programs and projects for PWDs.

"One of our programs is the Tulong-Alalay Para sa Taong may Kapansanan or TULAY, which is under the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program. Since its inception, over 5,000 Filipino PWDs have benefited from the skills and entrepreneurship training, common facilities, tools, jigs, and raw materials for livelihood projects offered under TULAY," Baldoz said.

In the formal sector, the DOLE vigorously pursues compliance with the law urging employers to hire more PWDs in return for tax privileges and other incentives. Baldoz urged government agencies to monitor and report the number of PWDs under their employ in the interest of transparency, saying that the DOLE itself has over 30 employees who are PWDs.

Through the Social Insurance Fund contributed by employers and administered by the Government Service Insurance Service and Social Security System, the DOLE's Employee Compensation Commission implements a social insurance program for occupationally-disabled workers. The SIF answers for claims of workers on work-related accidents and disabilities.

At present, Baldoz said the ECC is studying the possibility of putting under the coverage of the employees compensation program voluntary and self-employed workers or those in the informal sector, in pursuit of the inclusive growth strategy.

"To assist PWDs in their search for jobs, I have instructed the Bureau of Local Employment to make the PhilJobnet facility easily accessible to PWDs by lodging their skills and qualification profiles in the "skills for hire" category. The same should be true with the skills training of the TESDA," Baldoz further said.

Baldoz expressed confidence that PWDs, as members of the labor force, have the capacity to contribute to national development efforts provided they are given the opportunity to cultivate their immense potential. - Official Gazette — ARA