6th Africa Forum, Kampala, Uganda

From The Uganda National Association Of The Blind - UNAB

On behalf of the Board of Directors and Staff of UNAB, I wish to warmly welcome participants and delegates from Africa, Asia, Europe, America and Australia to the 6th Africa Forum in Uganda, the host country.

UNAB is a member of the World Blind Union and the Africa Union of the Blind. For development support and service delivery to persons with visual impairment, UNAB closely works with ICEVI, SRF, NABP, KBT, Visio International, Perkins, Light for the World, Sightsavers, Standard Chartered Bank and key line Ministries – all of whom are here oday.
We are grateful to the IDP for the long term relationship and empowerment of blind people in Uganda. This has resulted to UNAB hosting the Africa Forum for the second time
Dear delegates, while in Uganda, we encourage you to feel free, see Uganda both in the day and night and sample our rich culture and the hospitality of our people. When you go back to your respective countries do remember to be in touch with UNAB. Even without Sight there is still a vision.
Ntege Kizito,

UNAB Chairman.

SATURDAY 3^RD OCTOBER 2015

09:00 – 17:00 HRS

PRE-CONFERENCE CLOSED DOOR MEETINGS

AFUB Board Meeting (Emerald Hall)

ICEVI EXCO Meeting (Amethyst Hall)

NABP Partners Meeting (Majestic Hall)

PARTICIPANTS REGISTRATION (Victoria Ball Room)

KAMPALA TOURS (Register At Information Desk)

_______

SUNDAY 4^TH OCTOBER 2015

09:00 – 16:00 HRS

PRE-CONFERENCE CLOSED DOOR MEETINGS

ICEVI EXCO Meeting (Amethyst Hall)

SRF Partners Meeting (Majestic Hall)

PARTICIPANTS REGISTRATION (Victoria Ball Room)

EXHIBITION SET-UP (Albert Hall)

KAMPALA TOURS (Register At Information Desk)

16:00 – 18:00 HRS

OFFICIAL OPENING OF THE 6^TH AFRICA FORUM (Victoria Hall)

18:00 – 19:00 HRS

WELCOME COCKTAIL (SRM Poolside)

IDP BOARD MEETING – 19:00 – 20:00

MONDAY 5^TH OCTOBER 2015

PROMOTING PEACEFUL AND INCLUSIVE SOCIETIES FOR ALL

PLENARY SESSION – VICTORIA HALL (9.00 – 10.00 A.M)

SESSION CHAIR
Hon. Sulaiman Madada

Minister of State for Elderly And Disability

Republic Of Uganda.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
His Excellency Hon. Sam Kutesa

69^th President Of The United Nations General Assembly

And Minister For Foreign Affairs

Republic of Uganda.
CONTEXT SPEAKERS
Arnt Holte

President, World Blind Union

Norway.
Dave Power

President, Perkins School For the Blind

USA.

PANEL SESSIONS (11:00 - 12:30 P.M)

Putting The SDGs Into Action (Victoria Hall)
Panel Chair: Jace Nair, President, African Union of the Blind, South Africa.
Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in the Post-2015 Development Agenda: Policy and Practice in Kenya.

Dr. K. Laibuta & Mrs J. Kivasu, Kenya Society for the Blind, Kenya.

[e-mail]
The adoption of UNCRPD in 2006 and the subsequent ratification by Kenya in 2008 and domestication in 2010 ushered in a new era of heightened activity in the promotion and protection of disability rights. Also, the reformed constitutional order presents new challenges in service delivery to accord with the devolved system of government. Despite these challenges, the Constitution and the restructured service delivery model offer the ideal platform for inclusive development under the post-2015 development agenda. The Kenya Society for the Blind has responded to these reforms and taken steps to realign its programmes with the new service delivery model for the benefit of persons with visual disabilities and to match policy with practice.
Outcome Based Planning And Evaluation To Build Resilience And Promote Sustainable Development.

C.S. Maholo, Kyambogo University, Uganda.

[e-mail]
In many communities of Africa, persons with disabilities (PWDs) are often the poorest and most vulnerable. Here, poverty remains a great challenge due to the limited resilience of individuals and families. This paper intends to trigger a paradigm shift to resilience building using outcome-based planning where beneficiaries’ needs and desired results determine service delivery and program development. It should also facilitate the adoption of outcome based evaluation where assessment is based on achievement of the desired change or intended results.
Time To Be Hard: Litigation in the Break of Dawn - A Right Course for Persons with visual impairment .

S. P. Odongoi, Cardiff Law School , UK.

[e-mail]

It is claimed and reported that three of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGS) have been achieved prior to the 2015 deadline. To determine the impact of these achievements on the lives of persons with visual impairment may require a great deal of inquiry. This paper identifies effective strategic litigation (ESL) as the next and fundamental step in enhancing the rights of persons with visual impairment in Africa beyond 2015. In addition, the paper attempts to front possible mechanisms for ESL with a view of alleviating potential challenges.
Post 2015 Development Agenda-Inclusive Targets And Indicators.

Dr. V. J. Cordeiro, WBU, India.

[e-mail]
The key objective of this session is to facilitate the participants to understand and internalize the need for inclusive targets and indicators in post 2015 development agenda. The post 2015 development is required to achieve equity and justice in the society. The author calls for a focus on accessibility, affordability, equality and nondiscrimination which are the prerequisites for achieving inclusive development and growth. The author concludes with few examples of inclusive targets and indicators put forth by IDDC and IDA for the consideration of the Open Working Group on sustainable development targets.

Access To The Environment (Meera Hall)
Panel Chair: Tracy Vaughan-Gough, Social Inclusion Advisor, Sightsavers,, UK.
SmartCane^TM: Enabling Safe Independent Mobility with Dignity.

Dr. R. Paul, Assistive Technologies Group, IIT Delhi, India.

[e-mail]
SmartCane^TM is a mobility aid for the visually impaired used in conjunction with a white cane. It helps in detecting knee-to-head height obstacles as thin as 3 cm within the range of 3 m. The device employs ultrasound based ranging for obstacle detection and informs the user about impending obstacles. Its battery can last up to 10 hours, and the device can be simply removed and replaced as the user wishes. SmartCane^TM gives a pre-warning through vibrations helping users avoid obstacles and unwanted collisions altogether. SmartCane^TM is among the first efforts to produce a mobility device at an affordable price. Nearly 2000 units have been produced and are being disseminated through the Indian Government distribution schemes as well as partner organizations. Now the focus is to scale-up and reach out to a large number of all those working for the empowerment of the visually impaired globally.
The Application Of Tactile Ground Surface Indicators (TGSI’s) On Intersections In South Africa;

F. Combrinck, GIBB Engineering and Architecture (Pty) Ltd, South Africa.

[e-mail]
Tactile Ground Surface Indicators (TGSI) are pavement blocks with small extrusions or raised tactile nodules with an embossed profile that translates into information and guidance to the visually impaired, underfoot or by using a cane. Over the last ten years or so, a lot of controversy and confusion was created about the correct design and construction of tactile pedestrian ramps at intersections in South Africa. After researching local and international documents, reports, guidelines and standards GIBB, developed a standard book on the contemporary standard or guidelines with the City of Tshwane. The document complies and incorporates international best practice, consultation with the National Department of Transport (NDoT), South African Bureau of Standards (SABS), Universal Access Consultants and some disability alliance groups including South African National Council for the Blind (SANCB). This paper gives a brief overview of the developed standard book of drawings and shows a few implemented examples in South Africa and Nigeria.
Access To The Environment And Transport - Current World-Wide Issues.

M. Abel-Williamson, WBU, New Zealand.

[e-mail]
The current priority areas of the work of the WBU will be the main focus here. These include quiet vehicles, a barrier Free Environment (newly updated WBU Policy), shared spaces, and, access to international air travel (main issues and solutions). Lastly, the presenter will be checking in with the audience to answer questions around these areas as further clarification and explanation might be required.

Promoting Inclusive Societies (Sheena Hall)

Panel Chair: Thomas Ongolo, Director, International Programs, African Disability Alliance, South Arica.
Inclusiveness as Tested by Time.

L. Matenje, Malawi Union of the Blind, Malawi.

[e-mail]
With examples of the process of domesticating the culture of inclusiveness in Malawi, this paper explores concurrently rising opportunities and challenges, and induces leadership in organizations of and for persons with visual impairment to enrich efficacy with a culture of quantitative and qualitative monitoring and evaluation in order to make appropriate strides in defending and promoting inclusiveness. An attempt is also made to highlight the need to safeguard the unity of purpose among PWDs, and to retain the direction wherein persons with visual impairment will suffice for inalienable players in the socio-economic development of their communities.
Information and Social Reawakening: The Visually Impaired Woman and the Quest For Excellence.

E. S. Okotie, Hope Inspired Foundation For Women And Youth With Disabilities, Nigeria..

[e-mail].
There are over two hundred and eight-five million blind and partially sighted persons in the world and visually impaired African women constitute a significant proportion of this population. Goal Three of the Millennium Development Goals (MGDs) provides African states the opportunity not only for social inclusiveness in terms of policy target, but also a platform to empower women, including the visually impaired ones. Though, disadvantaged, they have the ability to see with what the author calls the "Third Eyes" (which is the inner eye). This paper uses the survey method to espouse the pivotal role of information in changing societal perception. This is meant to reawake a social consciousness, as well as impact the visually challenged woman to spur her in the expression of her potentials, especially in the post 2015 agenda.
Harnessing the Synergies Of The Gender Movement In Mainstreaming Women with Disabilities.

M. Steff & G. Antwi-Atsu, SightSavers, Ghana.

[e-mail]
In 2011 WHO/WB estimated that about 15% of the global population have a disability and noted a higher female prevalence. Women and girls with disabilities (WGWD) are further disadvantaged due to the combined discrimination based on gender and disability. This session intents to highlight current practise of WGWD within DPOs and other groups in discourse during this forum, bring to the fore the need for WGWD and feminist activists to gain in-depth knowledge of the UNCRPD and other Human Rights Provisions (HRP) to promote inclusion of WGWD, and, to create the platform for multi-stakeholder discourse to harness the synergies of HRP.
Persons with Disabilities in Church and Society: Shifting from Charity to Rights-Based Approach for Inclusion.

G. Fefoame, SightSavers, Ghana.

[e-mail]
The principles of a rights-based approach (RBA) are not observed for PWD’s and other marginalized persons. This paper intends to introduce a God’s creation which embraces diversity. It discusses the different modes of disability and how it has impacted on the church and society with illustrations of development initiatives by the church. Some of the gaps in those initiatives are highlighted. RBA is then introduced and is used to engage interaction of experiences for the shift from charity to RBA. The presentation concludes with suggestions and recommendations for the shift from charity to RBA by the church. Additionally, the presenters hope to obtain volunteers who wish to be part of a “Disability Inclusion Campaign” in their churches for follow-up work.

Access To Land, Housing and Sanitation (Royal Hall)

Panel Chair: Dr. Peter Obeng Asamoah, Executive Director, Ghana Blind Union, Ghana.
Right of Access to Ownership to Land and Housing.

S. Mutuma, High Court Of Kenya, Kenya.

[e-mail]
The right to own property is a fundamental right that is guaranteed by the constitution and also by statute in many African countries. Access and ownership of property includes all movable and immovable property, with land and housing considered immovable property. The bill of rights in Kenya establishes the basic human rights that must be upheld; they apply to all citizens irrespective of any other considerations. Amongst these are the right to non-discrimination and right to dignity. These rights can be enforced through proper application of the existing legal framework, effective implementation of existing legislation on affirmative action and the effective implementation of international conventions and legislation giving effect to the rights.
Persons with Disabilities and the Right to Social Protection.

L. Groß, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany.

[e-mail]

The right to social protection is one of the basic human rights and is one of the most important mechanisms when it comes to poverty reduction strategies. Social protection has not been part of the general discussion regarding the UNCRPD up to now although the convention does address this right. The interpretation of this norm raises complex legal questions and due to a far-reaching development of the right, the exact content is not clear. Nevertheless it is the obligation of the States Parties to implement mechanisms which guarantee an effective realization of this right.
The Enjoyment Of The Right To Property By Persons with visual impairment In Kenya

Dr. S. K. Tororei, National Land Commission, Kenya.

[e-mail]
Ownership of and access to property such as land is important in the life of persons with no other means of livelihoods. It is true that visually impaired persons fare poorly in employment and mainly depend on non-disabled members of their family for sustenance. . Nevertheless, the enjoyment of this right by persons with visual impairment in Kenya is limited. The constitution of Kenya enshrines the right to property by all and prohibits discrimination on grounds such as disability. However, going by anecdotal evidence, the same is not true in the case of access to and ownership of property. This paper explores the extent to which constitutional and legislative provisions affect the ability of persons with visual impairment to enjoy the right to property, including processes to enable ownership of and access to land and housing in Kenya.
Equity And Access To Water And Sanitation Services For Persons Who Are Visually Impaired In Kisumu City, Kenya.

Dr. C. M. Were, Maseno University, Kenya.

[e-mail]
The combination of safe drinking water and hygienic sanitation facilities is a pre-condition for achieving human wellbeing. The importance of water and sanitation in the attainment of a good health status can therefore not be overstated. This study therefore sought to find out whether there is equity in access to water and sanitation services for persons who are visually impaired in Kisumu city. It also examined the perception of sighted members of the community with regard to this issue in particular, but also persons with visual impairment in general.

Promoting Eye Health Services (Regal Hall)

Panel Chair: Dr. Stanley Bubikire, Head of Prevention of Blindness, Ministry of Health, Uganda..
The Obstacle Course: Barriers To Eye Health In Southern Africa.

T. Merrill, Orbis Africa, South Africa.

[e-mail]
Orbis Africa conducted research in two sites in South Africa and Zambia aiming to record and analyze factors impeding the presentation of childhood cataract. In both countries, inadequate infrastructure necessary to cope with eye disease underpins ineffective health care. However, actual factors that prevent quality eye health are significantly more nuanced, often concealed by dynamic social, economic and historical elements. This presentation explores those factors, such as knowledge deficiency within and outside the medical profession and competing medical paradigms. Similarities and differences between the results of the two countries are examined. This presentation describes the research results and how Orbis Africa has used those results to improve programming and advocacy in Africa.
Making Low Vision Care Accessible Through Up-skilling in Nigeria.

Dr. A. Ebri, H. Minto & V. F. Chan, BrienHoldenVisionInstitute, South Africa

[e-mail]; [e-mail]; [e-mail];

Low vision impacts negatively on individuals and society. Nigeria has an estimated 3.75 million people with low vision (LV). Despite having over 42 hospitals with eye units, only 3 centres provided LV services in 2006. The reported challenges in implementing services were lack of space for practice and unawareness of service among ECP and clients. The authors conclude that up-skilling, monitoring and support of trained personnel at their stations have improved access to LV services, and suggest that improved technology and skills will further improve uptake of these services in Nigeria.
The Successes and Challenges of Creating Sustainable National Access to Tailor-made Eye-glasses in Uganda.

Wolfgang Gindorfer, Light For The World, Uganda.

[e-mail]
Under the auspices of the Ministry of Health of Uganda LIGHT FOR THE WORLD and BRIEN HOLDEN VISION INSTITUTE FOUNDATION are jointly implementing the programme on National Intervention on Uncorrected refractive errors in Uganda. This programme is at the same time a pilot for the International Council of Ophthalmology to establish accessible and affordable high quality refractive and optical services for people with uncorrected refractive errors. It will further address piloted district programme development with emphasis on school eye health, obstacles experienced in the field with trained cadres and the role and responsibilities of the Ministry of Health under which umbrella-ship this programme is being implemented.
Integration of Primary Eye Care into Primary Health Care in Southern Africa: Experiences from Malawi, Mozambique And Zimbabwe.

Dr. D. Lackey, HelpAge, Kenya.

[e-mail]]
This Panel intends to discuss the four areas of Primary Eye Care, namely, Key components of human resources development, service delivery and community mobilization, Training and support of mid-level health workers, Essential medicines and equipment, health information system, stakeholder coordination, technical support and supervision, and, Role of community and traditional leaders, and, traditional health practitioners in raising awareness and addressing myths and misconceptions on eye conditions and the mechanisms for community mobilization.

Training Program On Web Accessibility – I (Majestic Hall)

DAISY Consortium/UNESCO.

[e-mail]
Target audience for this training are people engaged in developing websites and software applications to orient them to the web accessibility barriers and the best practices for making information available to all. This training will cover the following topics: common web accessibility barriers: testing for web accessibility: web accessibility guidelines; examples of good accessible websites; and code snippets for retrofitting inaccessible websites. Participants will be expected to bring their computers with them.

Providing Services In Humanitarian Situations (Emerald Hall)
Panel Chair: Victor Locoro, Lecturer, Kyambogo University, Uganda.
Rainbow in the Rain of Bullets.

S. D. Cho, Handicap Initiative Support and Network (HISAN), Somalia.

[e-mail]
Located in Merka, Somalia, the Rainbow School for the Blind was started in 2004. Beginning as a Braille Centre, it begun with 3 teenage boys. The school faced a lot of challenges, not least because of the lack of proper government structure, and all the teaching materials had to be imported. These challenges led to the conversion from a Braille Centre to a School. On World Sight Day, the school put out activities to sensitize the community and government such as exhibitions, presentations and competition between unsighted and sighted students. The community finally not only accepted, but also respected the students as able members of the society. The result has been that parents opt to send their sighted children to the Rainbow School, meaning that the children learn from one another in an inclusive setting, and some have set their dreams on becoming Special Needs Education teachers.

Providing Services to Visually Impaired Persons in Kakuma Refugee Camp.

J. N. Kimani, Handicap-International, Kenya.

[e-mail]

Kakuma refugee camp is located in Turkana County in the North-western part of Kenya. Established in 1992, it had a population of 184,476 people from Southern Sudan, Somalia, Rwanda, Congo, Burundi, Uganda, Ethiopia, Senegal and Yemen by April 2014 (UNHCR). 10% of these are believed to be persons living with disabilities (PWDs), with persons living with visual impairments being the second largest group or PWD’s. However, whereas more than 20 NGO’s operate here, only four NGO’s have programs that directly target persons with visual impairment This presentation focuses on this unique environment and how best practices in service delivery for persons with visual impairment with a key interest on basic services such as food, water and sanitation, health, education, non-food items, economic support and rehabilitation services. It also discusses barriers such as mobility, stigma, education and discrimination that exists in this setting and how best they can be reduced.
Access to Education Services to Visually Impaired Persons in Dadaab Refugee Camp.

F. Kareri, Handicap International - TUSK, Kenya.

[e-mail]
Dadaab Refugee Camp is located in Garissa County in the north-eastern part of Kenya. The camp has a population of approximately 389,000 refugees, with 15,300 being persons with disabilities (PWD) falling in different categories of disability. PWD’s who are refugees face many challenges in their endeavours to access services at an equal basis with others. This paper seeks to analyse challenges and offer recommendations in relation to accessing education services by Children with Visual Impairment in Dadaab. The paper discusses some of the interventions that can be used to tackle the aforementioned and other challenges.
The Effect Of Natural Disasters On PWD: A Case Study Of Blind And Partially Sighted People In Uganda.

J.C. Ninsiima, ADD International, Uganda.

[e-mail] or [e-mail]
Blind and partially sighted people in Uganda have suffered immensely during times of risk, humanitarian emergencies and natural disasters including geophysical hazards such as floods, landslides and earthquakes. These situations necessitated humanitarian responses but blind and partially sighted people were not targeted and hence were denied services. Therefore, policy-makers are duty-bound to be fully inclusive in their response to humanitarian emergencies, situations of risk and natural disasters so that blind and partially sighted people benefit on an equal basis with others.

Atlas Alliance Workshop On Media and Disability (Amethyst Hall)

Anne Nyeggen, Atlas Alliance, Norway

[e-mail]
This is a closed-door training to build the skills of communications and media workers as well as people working in the disability sector in developing content and working with the media for positive portrayal of disability Participants to this workshop have already been selected.