Rotary International has called on the government to provide accessible learning opportunities to children living with disabilities.

Speaking during the Rotary Sunshine Rally at the Jamhuri Showground on Saturday, the event’s chairperson, Saum Siraj also appealed to the government to provide a more enabling environment to people living with disabilities in the job market by constructing more Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions.

 “We hardly have enough TVETS allocated to PWDs. They are supposed to be there, but practically they are not there,” she stated.

Sunshine Rally is an annual event founded in 1979 by Dr Manu Chandaria, a philanthropist and Rotarian, with over 1.4 million members worldwide.

Siraj stated that most parents with children with disability frequently find themselves trapped, unsure of what to do once their children have completed their primary and secondary school education.

According to the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) 2021 report, the number of people with disabilities enrolled in TVETs in Kenya was fewer than 2 percent, with 7 percent of those enrolled having mental and intellectual disabilities.

“These barriers are further reinforced through structural hurdles, such as TVET admission criteria which are not favorable towards persons with mental disabilities and deficient policies that do not recognize such disabilities nor the importance of equal access to employment and decent work,” ILO’s report read in part.

Siraj also urged the government to pass the Disability Act, which she claims focuses on free National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF), more accessible health facilities, the creation of better employment opportunities, the creation of more learning and affordable learning institutions for people with disabilities, and many other things.

The Sunshine rally was held for the 41st time last Saturday. The blithesome event has risen in popularity over the years, with over 7,000 children with a disability attending this year.

The event drew a number of hospitality sector partners as well as the National Council of Persons with Disability Kenya (NCPWD).

“Just being around the public, like today, these children feel part and parcel of the community. This event helps them get integrated back into the community,” Siraj said.