Vietnam Assistance for the Handicapped initiated a new program in January to promote "Inclusion of Vietnamese with Disabilities" (IVWD). The three-year program is funded by USAID, a decade-long supporter of VNAH's efforts to improve the policies and operational environment in which the disabled live and strive.
The IVWD Program promotes the development and effective implementation of the national disability inclusion policy. At the national level, the project will focus on activities to promote inclusive policies and central coordination. At the local level, in the two targeted provinces of Ninh Binh and Quang Nam, the aim is to direct grassroots efforts designed to move
people with disabilities into the mainstream of Vietnamese society.
Specific objectives will include:
- Promoting a national disability law
- Promoting inclusion of disability issues in the Vocational Training Law and in the national survey on living standards
- Expanding and promoting stronger enforcement of the accessibility standards in public construction and transportation
- Developing an additional set of accessibility standards for people with hearing and visual impairments
- Establishing an "Employers Panel" to promote employment of people with disabilities
- Assisting the National Coordinating Council on Disabilities (NCCD) and the Committee on Social Affairs of the National Assembly (CSA) in their efforts to improve coordination and promote development and implementation of disability laws and policies
- Assisting the development of disabled people's organizations
VNAH continues to work with local and international partners it has had since the early 1990s. Among these partners are the NCCD, which has 26 members from relevant ministries and organizations including the Ministries of Labor, Invalid and Social Affairs (MOLISA), Transportation (MOT), Construction (MOC), Home Affairs (MOHA) and CSA.
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