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30 NUEVA VIZCAYA
They Used to Have a Handicap
Empowerment of Persons with Disability in Nueva Vizcaya
PERSONS with disability (PWD) tend to keep to themselves and stay
away from people. They suffer from social discrimination, which
reinforces their already low self-esteem. But a caring local government
changed all that for the more than 5,000 PWDs in Nueva Vizcaya.
Not Alms But Dignity
In the 1990s, an increasing number of Nueva Vizcaya’s more than 5,000
PWDs were noticed to be either soliciting money or roaming the streets
to beg for alms. A survey showed that most of them were uneducated,
jobless, and poor, earning a mere P800 a month, if at all. They did not
have access to basic social services, and were in poor health.
The action taken by the provincial government was to organize and
accredit the Provincial Federation of PWDs of Nueva Vizcaya. The
ultimate goal is to turn the federation into a self-help and self-sustaining
organization, which can be the partner of local government in
implementing self-sufficiency programs and other local development
undertakings. With the federation PWDs would be offered the
opportunities and means to live a life of dignity, notwithstanding their
disability, and become productive members of society.
Organizing is a continuing process. Of the more than 5,000 PWDs
in the province’s 15 municipalities, only 1,808 came out in the open to
become federation members. For those who have already joined, some
success have already been made and are being enjoyed.
Teaching How to Fish
Mendicancy and dependence have given way to self-sufficiency and
independence. Livelihood enterprises have been established by many
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