World Deaf Information Resource Project Launches

A new initiative enables users to find deaf organizations and schools in 149 countries around the world. Launched by the Gallaudet University Center for International Programs and Services (CIPS) in October 2009, the World Deaf Information Resource Project provides contact information for hundreds of international-, national-, and local-level organizations and schools globally. The website also links to on-line reports about the human rights conditions and living situation of deaf people around the world and other information resources for deaf individuals and organizations.

“Deaf people always benefit when deaf organizations, schools, and individuals are able to exchange ideas and information,” says Dr. Asiah Mason, director of CIPS. “But before organizations can communicate with each other, they need a way to find each other. The new World Deaf Information Resource Project lets them do that. It is our hope this can be a powerful information resource for the global deaf community.”

In addition to browsing the website, users also may download most of the same information in either Word or PDF format. The file enables users to produce a 104-page hard copy document for dissemination to contacts who might not have Internet access.

The new website can be accessed at http://cips.gallaudet.edu/wdi.xml. CIPS intends to continue expanding the website and file over time. People are invited to submit information about deaf organizations, schools, and deaf-related information resources not already included in the project to World.Deaf.Info@gallaudet.edu.
CIPS is a unit within the Gallaudet University College of Professional Studies and Outreach and is the university’s one-stop office for all things international. Gallaudet University is the only liberal arts university for deaf students in the world. Mason credits the website as being the brain-child of Dr. Amy Wilson, Director of Gallaudet University’s International Development program, and of Dr. Jay Innes, the Dean of CPSO. Andrea Shettle began the work of gathering information for the website during an internship for the MA degree program in International Development at Gallaudet.

Handicap International intends to engage a facilitator to conduct governance training for the newly elected board. Profiles of the organization and justification for having the training is described in the attached document.

All interested parties must submit a technical and financial proposal explaining their understanding of the TOR and how they intend to conduct the training, a budget, an updated CV before 15th June 2009 5.00 pm. The TOR, and application instructions, are provided below.

Kindly circulate this advert to other members. Thank you for your continued support.

Kind regards,

Naomie Njoroge
Administrative Assistant
Handicap International Kenya/Somalia Programme
www.handicap-international.org

TERMS OF REFERENCE
FACILITATION FOR GOVERNANCE AND LEADERSHIP TRAINING FOR DISABLED GROUP OF TRANS NZOIA
Date 11th May 2009

Introduction
HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL is an international NGO specializing in the field of disability and development. A strong emphasis is placed on empowering people with disabilities through their integration into mainstream development activities and the provision of appropriate health and rehabilitation services to ensure equal opportunities for all.
Currently, Handicap International is working with 7 partner organizations in the USAID/AED funded projects in the field of Disability and HIV & AIDS. The group represents a cross section of disabilities including the deaf, blind and low vision, physically and intellectually disabled.

The main thematic areas of the project activities include;
• Policy and advocacy
• Behavior change communication
• Appropriate IEC materials for the PWD
• Stigma reduction

One of the main focus of the project is the provision of technical support and institutional strengthening by Handicap International to the partner organization to enable efficient and effective implementation of the HIV& AIDS activities.
Background to Sub Grantee organization

Even though HI is working with 7 organizations, this facilitator will only work with DIGROT (based in Kitale) to conduct governance training for the newly elected board. Profiles of the organization and justification for having the training is described below:

1. DIGROT
Background
DIGROT was started in 1990 as a self help group with 50 members with a merry go round to which they contributed 50 – 100 shillings. In 1998, the group opened an account with KCB bank and started a micro finance lending system. Members were given loans of ksh.500 to Ksh 2,000 at an interest rate of 10% p.a.

In 2000, they received a grant from DSDO (Poverty Eradication Programme) which they used to provide loans to their members. 14 members were successfully supported through this programme and 7 defaulted on repayment. DIGROT was trained by HI in 2004 on micro-credit management to address this challenge.

In the years 2001-2003 DIGROT approached HI with a goal of beginning HIV/AIDS awareness activities and in 2004 they wrote a proposal to HI on HIV and AIDS and Disability which was subsequently funded in May 2006 by USAID through AED.
Today DIGROT has representatives from different locations in Trans Nzoia district and was registered as a CBO in 2007. It currently has 224 registered members and each member pays 524 shillings registration fee with a renewal fee of 200 shillings annually. Not all members are fully registered and the money is kept in a savings account.

Justification
DIGROT as an organization for PWD has faced various problems and wrangles have interfered with their operations as an organization. To rectify this, the organization has recently undergone changes to make operations of the organization effective. Some of the changes in the recent past months includes; new staff on board, amendment of its constitution and election of new members to the board.

In line with this changes and growth for the organization, and the planned support for development of a strategic plan, HI intends to support DIGROT in training its new board on governance and good leadership with an aim of strengthening the new team, take stock of lessons learnt from past experiences and enhance prudent management of resources. This is also seen as an opportunity to augment a strong basis for conflict resolutions and create an environment for DIGROT members reconnect with the organizations mission and vision, strengthen its membership and development partners
Further to all the above, the evaluation conducted on the Disability, HIV and AIDS in 07/08 project reiterated Special focus on Disabled Group of Trans Nzoia (DIGROT) on capacity building and governance.

Objectives of the consultancy
The general objective of the training shall be to equip the participants with knowledge and skills on leadership and good governance to provide direction, control and management to the organization

Specific objectives
1. To help participants understand and appreciate the importance of good governance by
o Understanding the term governance and its pillars
o Appreciating the importance of leadership and governance to an organization in promoting institutional growth
o Understanding the role of the board in providing direction and prudent management in order to enhance long term membership values through enhancing corporate performance and accountability, whilst taking into account the interest of other stakeholders.

2. To facilitate a participatory formulation of a code of best practice in relation to governance that meets the priorities of the organizations and its stakeholders, based on their missions and objectives, and also considering national and international processes and trends in disability and development.

Expected results
1. DIGROT board is reoriented and is able to provide a healthy and sustainable advisory role.
2. DIGROT as an organization focuses on its vision and mission and establish a strong basis for conflict resolution

Proposed Methodology
HI proposes a pre-training assessment using questionnaires and a two days participatory training (Focus group discussion, Group work, role plays) session where the board members of DIGROT shall be brought together with an intent to learn and discuss leadership and good governance and development of code of best practice for the organization;

Expected Outputs
1. A Report of the pre-training assessment and governance training.
2. Code of best practice.
3. An action plan of the board that intends to put in place measures to enhance governance within their organization

Time frame
The assessment should be done 3 days before the actual training. The code of best practice will be developed by the board with support from the consultant during the training. The training is planned for 25th and 26th June 2009 and the report to be submitted by 3rd July 2009.

Location
DIGROT is located in Trans Nzoia district, Kitale town.

Budget
The total cost of the consultancy is Kshs. 30,000/=.

Qualification and Competencies:
The consultant should have:
• A masters degree, in the field of administration and/or management or in a relevant field
• Knowledge and experience in leadership and governance training and tool development for Community Based Organizations.
• Knowledge on disability issues is desirable
• Knowledge and experience of participatory approaches and facilitation.
• Ability to operate systematically and commitment to meeting deadlines

Application process
All interested parties must submit a technical and financial proposal explaining their understanding of the TOR and how they intend to conduct the training, a budget, an updated CV before 15th June 2009 5.00 pm. Please send your details to the Human Resource Officer at:
hrofficer@handicap-international.or.ke
The email subject line should be marked: “Consultancy for Governance Training”



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First posted in November 2008 at http://www.uclan.ac.uk/ahss/research/islands/sign_language.php

£58,000 for deaf empowerment in Africa

The iSLanDS Centre has received a grant from the Education Partnership Africa programme for capacity building in sub-Saharan Africa.

The project “Training and employability for the deaf communities in Ghana and Uganda” is a joint initiative with the University of Ghana, Kyambogo University in Uganda, and deaf organisations in both countries, and aims at capacity building in the areas of applied sign language studies.

Course and curriculum development includes a sign language interpreter training course at the University of Ghana, a 2-year diploma course for deaf students in Applied Sign Language Studies in Uganda, and summer courses in academic skills development for deaf students. All of these are first-time initiatives, and are realised in close partnership with local deaf organisations.

We expect this project to impact positively on literacy, employability, and access to work for talented deaf participants in these programmes.

For further details, contact the project leader Ulrike Zeshan at uzeshan@uclan.ac.uk, or Sam Lutalo-Kiingi at slutalo-kiingi@uclan.ac.uk



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en français

Africa Thesis Award 2009

[Editor's Note: Although this award is not specific to disability issues, it does say that topics should be "socially relevant." We Can Do readers in Africa or the Netherlands may wish to consider using this competition as an opportunity to submit Masters' theses on disability issues in Sub-Saharan Africa. I also hope that students with disabilities will compete for the 1000 Euro prize, regardless of the topic of your thesis. Please do NOT inquire with We Can Do. Instead, please consult the official award web site directly for instructions on how to participate in this competition.. The submission deadline is June 16, 2009. Missed the deadline? This is an annual opportunity---consult the official award web site for future details.]

The African Studies Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands, has an annual award for the best Masters thesis on Sub-Saharan Africa by a student at a university in the Netherlands or in Africa. Any final-year student who has completed his/her Masters thesis with distinction (80% or higher or a Dutch rating of at least can apply. The ASC specifically encourage students from Sub-Saharan Africa to submit their theses for this annual competition.

Any thesis thematically related to socio-geographical, economic, political, juridical or anthropological issues or focusing on the humanities such as history, religion and literature (but with the exception of language and/or semiotic studies) can be submitted. The thesis must be socially relevant and can be be written in English, French or Dutch.

The award consists of a price of 1000 euros. The winning thesis will also be published in the ASC African Studies Collection. Submitted theses may be (partially) published on The Broker’s website: www.thebrokeronline.eu.

More detail is available on ASC’s website, including instructions for contacting the people responsible for organizing this opportunity: http://www.ascleiden.nl/Research/Award/

Date limite: le 16 juin 2009!

Vous vous intéressez à l’Afrique et vous avez écrit votre thèse de Master sur un sujet ayant un rapport avec l’Afrique ? Le Centre d’Études africaines (Afrika-Studiecentrum, ASC) vous offre la chance de gagner le Prix de la thèse d’études africaines d’une valeur de 1000€.

Ce prix vise à encourager les étudiants à faire des recherches et à écrire sur l’Afrique sub-saharienne, et à promouvoir les études sur les cultures et les sociétés africaines. Il est décerné une fois par an à un étudiant qui aura achevé sa thèse de Master sur la base d’un travail de recherche sur l’Afrique.

In French/en français: http://www.ascleiden.nl/Research/Award/MastersThesisAward-FR.aspx



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Abdul-Jeff Maalik Makana, the Executive Director of MindFreedom Kenya, wants to learn more about the challenges that other countries experience in implementing the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Below is his appeal for information. Please respond directly to him at kenya@mindfreedom.org.

Dear All,

Greetings from non sunny Nairobi day today!

We have a challenge here in Kenya advocating for the implementation of the UN CRPD. Are other states experiencing similar challenges? What are the challenges?

I recently on a media appearence to create awareness about the work of MindFreedom Kenya & advocating for the implementation of the UN CRPD… one caller to the show reinforced the general view that persons with psychosocial disabilities have no capacity at any time to make decision (Legal capacity) though the UN CRPD guarantees legal capacity(article 12) or even supported decision making.

To quote Daniel Hazen—Human Rights and Advocacy “cease the practice of exceptionalism when it comes to human rights” meaning we cannot downplay the CRPD which is a very important rallying point for our movement.

Mental Health (MH) policies cannot be written in a vacuum…. State parties and other stakeholders should get direction that adopting certain articles of the CRPD versus the CRPD in its entirety has far reaching consequences more so article 12 (right to legal capacity) a big part of the user/survivor movement advocacy.

Lastly, why was the term psychosocial disabled adopted in the UN CRPD versus the term mentally disabled or mentally ill? Here in Africa many don’t see mental illness as a disability? Can you please help me understand how to advocate better for psychosocial disabled term to be adopted and accepted locally.

What are your views:

I am doing a Survey on supporting signing/ratification and implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities by state parties without reservations.

This obligation would require that the States both refrain from actions that undermine the principles and initiate efforts which would promote them. You can also e-mail your comments directly to kenya@mindfreedom.org
Question:

As a user, a survivor. mental health worker, or human rights activist in mental health do you support the position that the CRPD is non negotiable, and that the nature of this commitment obligates state parties to completely review MH policies and legislation which relied on flawed WHO MI Principles? *

http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=cnR3dTlrTGFGRjFXY3g2YWhvTUJESUE6MA..

A few sampling of responses collected regarding the above question:

This obligation would require that the States both refrain from actions that undermine the principles and initiate efforts which would promote them.(MH Policy, legislation’s, new MH laws, civic education, more access to mental services at the community level, empowering of persons with psychosocial disabilities to participate equally in society without being discriminated based on disabilities).

Absolutely I support it!! Recently there have been reports that they are opening “behavioral” units in nursing homes in New York State–a way to lock us up again quietly so there won’t be too many complaints. Fortunately we noticed and… Read More now there’s a lawsuit. Good thing so many of us “suffer” from hypervigelance!! Anyway, so good to see that we’re coming together internationally. We can and will find our power no matter how hard the system tried to hold us down.

I am not sure that I can ask for the UN treaty to become nationalized, but I do agree with many of the tenets. I think that I can see where some conflicts of interest might be involved. So better person by person, not this group or that. That is what I think….

With kind regards,

Abdul-Jeff Maalik Makana

__________________________________
Abdul Maalik bin Ali formerly,
Jeff Makana

Executive Director,
MindFreedom Kenya(MF-K)
E-mail:kenya@mindfreedom.org
website: http://www.mindfreedomkenya.interconnection.org
Follow me on twitter@ www.twitter.com/Jeffmakana



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The Secretariat of the African Decade for Persons with Disabilities (SADPD)
APC-Africa-Women and Women’sNet
invite you to
Submit an application to participate in a Digital Storytelling Project
Application DUE 3 May 2009
Workshop dates 8 -12 June 2009

“It’s in the telling of our stories that we discover how much of our experiences and learning we have in common with others. Stories make our connection with others and with the world real. They weave together our individual experiences to reveal a picture of a community, a group and a country.”

Introduction

The Secretariat of the African Decade for Persons with Disabilities (SADPD) in partnership with APC-Africa-Women and Women’sNet, invite you to submit an application to participate in a digital storytelling workshop. We are inviting people living and working in Africa who would like to empower others and affect change by documenting their journey and telling their story. Applicants must be:

(1) parents/carers of children with disabilities and youth
(2) young people with disabilities
(3) people working in organizations to promote the rights of children and youth with disabilities e.g. Advocates, students, CBR workers, teachers, journalists, information activists, content developers, programme officer/managers,

Participants will develop short videos reflecting the experiences of parents and youth with disabilities in particular with regards to challenges and successes in accessing inclusive education, health, employment and acceptance in their communities and country. Participants will also examine the power dimensions of story-telling and how we retain the authenticity of our own voice, as well as the voices of the people whose stories we document, preserve or disseminate.

Parents, youth and individuals working in the field have many stories to tell, but never have the time, knowledge, equipment and space to reflect, understand and tell their own stories, share their responses, understandings and experiences.

There is a large amount of information on the internet but very little that reflects the lived realities of those affected and people working in the field of disability in Africa.

The workshop aims to:
• document real-life stories of a cross-section of parents and youth with disabilities as well as those working in the field
• empower people to tell their own stories, while at the same time create a powerful advocacy tool that can be used in their country and beyond.
• develop Information and Communication Technology (ICT) skills,
• enable parents and youth with disabilities to share and network amongst each other.

More about the workshop

In the workshop we will explore people’s own stories and learn how to develop a story line, use photo’s, video clips, and drawings to tell your story in an effective way.

There is space for twelve applicants who will participate in a five day digital storytelling workshop, 8 -12 June 2009.

In the month before the workshop delegates will need to join an online study group, collect content for their story (pictures etc) and begin to learn some of the software.

At the workshop participants will learn to use computer software and other equipment necessary for making a short (3-5 minutes) multimedia digital story.

The digital storytelling workshop is hands-on and computer intensive, requiring commitment and willingness to develop a short, personal story; learn new software and edit a short digital video of five minutes in length.

Digital storytelling is not like writing a formal document; it’s more like creative, autobiographical writing. To see an example, check out the website
http://www.takebackthetech.net
http://www.silencespeaks.org

In order to be eligible to participate, you must be able to attend all five days of the workshop, and be able to travel to South Africa to arrive by 7 June, departing 13 June 2009. Travel and accommodation will be sponsored by the SADPD. You must be willing to allow your story, or part of it, to be used in advocacy by SADPD and APC WNSP’s Take Back the Tech campaign. The workshop will be conducted in ENGLISH so other language speakers must have a good proficiency in English. Sign language and French / Portugese interpretation will be provided if necessary (Please motivate for this in application form).

This workshop is a chance to learn new skills and tell your story in a creative and visual format. It’s a lot of work . . . AND a lot of fun.

Copyright:
All stories are owned by the person who made them. The story is your story and will be licensed under a Creative Commons license. We are open to discussing a formula that respects your privacy and confidentiality should you be uncomfortable with the widespread sharing and dissemination of some parts of your story. We would like your stories to be part of a public effort promote the rights and quality of life for children and youth with disabilities and their families.

Who Should Apply?
• We are looking for stories told by parent, youth and individuals working in the field of Disability.
• Applicants must be living and working in Africa (preference will be given to women)
• Applicants must preferably be based in an organisation, institution or network, but individuals will also be considered.
• Youth should between the ages of 18 – 35
• The training is in English. Participants must speak and understand English but are welcome to produce their story in any language they choose. If however you require translation into French and Portuguese please motivate in your application.
• The story you tell has to be about you and your experiences. It can be about situations or events but it must be a personal story told in the first person
• The workshop requires a basic level of computer literacy.
• Applicants must be willing to avail themselves for future advocacy work or training in digital stories in their country.

Instructions:
Please complete the form below and email it as a file attachment to Nafisa Baboo nafisa@africandecade.co.za
DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTING APPLICATIONS is 3 May 2009. If you have any questions, feel free to email or Skype Nafisa on nafisababoo. Incomplete forms will not be considered for selection.

APPLICATION FORM

Date:
Name:
Address:
Country:
Organisation:
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Age:
Date of birth:
Disability:
Support needs (Enlarge print, Braille, translation etc)

Please describe in a few sentences the main point of the story you would like to tell.

What issues does your story address?

What do you hope to get out of the digital storytelling workshop?

Have you talked to anyone about the story you’d like to share, or is this the first time you’ll be talking about it in a group?

If this is your first time talking about it, what do you think it’ll be like for you to share the story with a group of people ?

Please write a draft of the story you’d like to share, below. It should be no more than 500 words (about one and ½ pages, double-spaced, typed). Your story should be written in the first-person. Note: If you’d like to see examples of other people’s digital stories, you can go to http://www.silencespeaks.org or http://www.womensnet.org.za or http://www.takebackthetech.net

Please briefly describe to us what you use computers for.

What is your familiarity with the following Software Programs and Processes? Please put an “x” to the right of the statements that most apply.

Using a PC (Windows Operating System) or a Macintosh Computer
I know nothing
I know next to nothing
I can get around fairly easily
I’m really comfortable
I know a lot

Scanning Photos or Other Images
I know nothing
I know next to nothing
I can get around fairly easily
I’m really comfortable
I know a lot

Adobe Photoshop
I know nothing
I know next to nothing
I can get around fairly easily
I’m really comfortable
I know a lot

Adobe Premiere
I know nothing
I know next to nothing
I can get around fairly easily
I’m really comfortable
I know a lot

Do you know how to (please mark YES or NO)
Open software applications YES/NO
Save documents and find them again YES/NO
How to use a mouse, cut and paste, drag and drop. YES/NO

It would be useful to know the following applications – Microsoft office or Open office, and using web browsers such as Internet Explorer or Firefox.

There are a limited number of spaces in the workshop. So please note that the submission of an application is no guarantee that APC-Africa-Women will be able to support you to attend. Successful applicants will be notified 5th May 2009.

Thank You!

INFORMATION ABOUT THE ORGANIZATIONS

About the Secretariat of the African Decade for Persons with Disabilities
The African Decade of Persons with Disabilities was proclaimed by the African Union for the period 1999 – 2009. The main goals of the African Decade are to raise awareness about the situation of the estimated 60-80 million persons with disabilities in the region and to identify solutions tailored to the African Experience that enhance participation, equality and empowerment of Africans with Disabilities. The overall aims and priorities of the Decade are stipulated in an AU- Continental Plan of Action. A Secretariat was established to facilitate the realization of these objectives.
The Secretariat is an international Non Governmental Organisation, established in 2004 by all the major Regional Disabled People’s Organisations to give a new dynamism to the implementation of the Continental Plan of Action. It is hosted, at the request of African Union by South Africa in Cape-Town where its headquarters are located. The mission of the Secretariat of the African Decade is to empower Governments, DPO´s, Decade steering committee’s (DSC) and development organizations to work in partnership to include disability and persons with disabilities into policies and programs in all sectors of society. The strategy of action of the Secretariat is to
• Build the capacities of DPOs, persons with disabilities who are most vulnerable and the Decade Steering Committees to enable them to advocate and lobby their respective government so that they integrate disability into all their development processes.
• Advocate and lobby for mainstreaming of disability in the policies and programmes.
• Raise awareness around the main issues related to persons with disabilities in society.
Http://www.sadpd.org

About APC-Africa-Women

APC-Africa-women is the African regional network of the Association for Progressive Communications Women’s Networking Support Programme (APC WNSP). APC WNSP is a global network of women who support women networking for social change and women’s empowerment, through the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs). We promote gender equality in the design, development, implementation, access to and use of ICTs and in the policy decisions and frameworks that regulate them. We have a special focus on redressing inequities based on women’s social or ethnic background – through the provision of research, training, information, and support activities in the field of ICT policy, skills-sharing in the access and use of ICT, and women’s network-building.
Http://www.apcwomen.org

APC-Africa-Women hosts Women’s Electronic Network Training (WENT) workshops every two years. WENT workshops aim to build the skills and capacities of women and their organisations to utilise ICTs in women’s empowerment, social development work and policy advocacy. In 2003 participants at WENT Africa developed skills in the repackaging of information through the convergence of old and new technologies using radio and in building websites using a Content Management System. Weaving through the training were sessions on gender and ICT policy issues. In 2005 WENT Africa was hosted in Kampala and using a two-track system, trained women technicians in the use of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) and women managers of NGOs in technology planning. More information can be viewed at http://wentafrica.blogspot.com/

About Women’sNet
Women’sNet works to advance gender equality and justice in South Africa through the use of ICTs by providing training and facilitating content dissemination and creation that supports women, girls, and women’s and gender organisations and networks to take control of their own content and ICT use. The organisation is one of the few working on technology for social change in South Africa, and the first to do this from a gender perspective our work has focused on technology for purpose – strengthening women’s organisations specifically and civil society in general – to use ICTs for achieving gender justice.
Http://www.womensnet.org.za



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GLOBAL: Small grants programme for deaf children

Since 2002, Deaf Child Worldwide has supported organisations working to help deaf children overcome the barriers that contribute to their poverty and isolation.

Round 8 of Deaf Child Worldwide’s Small Grants Programme (SGP) opens on 19 March 2009 and ends 30 May 2009.

The SGP supports projects which show clear, measurable and sustainable improvements to the lives of deaf children and their families in developing countries.

Deaf Child Worldwide fund projects of up to three years and for a maximum amount of £30,000 (£10,000 per year). Visit the website for information on the SGP and the application process.

Successful projects must meet one or more of Deaf Child Worldwide’s strategic aims. Applicants must consider our cross-cutting themes in the development of their proposal.

Deaf Child Worldwide is focusing its activities in East Africa (Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania), South Asia (Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka) and Latin America (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru). You must be based in one of these countries to apply to SGP.

Applications are only accepted in ‘concept note’ format in English or Spanish. The deadline for submission of concept notes to Deaf Child Worldwide is 30 May 2009. Selected projects will start in January 2010.

The following documents can be downloaded from the Deaf Child Worldwide website:

* Background information leaflet containing details of the full eligibility criteria
* Guidance on applying
* Concept note format

Visit: www.deafchildworldwide.info

More details on the Small Grant Programme at http://www.deafchildworldwide.info/where_we_work/small_grants_programme/index.html

More details on how to apply at http://www.deafchildworldwide.info/where_we_work/small_grants_programme/how_to_apply/index.html

Missed the May 30, 2009, deadline? Deaf Child Worldwide offers similar grants on a periodic basis, though not always in the same countries. Consult their web site at www.deafchildworldwide.info to learn of future opportunities like this one.



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Vacancy – Research Assistant Position for African Policy on Disability and Development (A-PODD)

Application Deadline: 13 March , 2009

A-PODD has a Research Assistantship position for 1 Year, and the candidate has to be from Sierra Leone. We seek a person with experience in researching disability issues for the above position. The project is housed at the Centre for Rehabilitation Studies, Stellenbosch University, South Africa, and the Centre for Global Health, Trinity College Dublin and The Secretariat of the African Decade for Persons with Disability, being other partners.

The Research Assistant should have a degree in a relevant social or health science, or evidence of operating at an equivalent level. The Research Assistant will be considered for fully-funded registration for a Masters in Research at Stellenbsoch University. Limited travel to South Africa will be required, with the Research Assistant based in Sierra Leone.

This is a re-advertisement as only two applicants with the relevant qualifications have been shorted listed. We need 3 interviewees so that we have a wide selection. The teleconferencing interview will take place on the 19th April 2009. People with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Project Description
A-PODD is a three year project funded by the (Irish) Health Research Board and Irish Aid. A-PODD is led by Prof Mac MacLachlan, Centre for Global Health and School of Psychology, Trinity College Dublin; Ms Gubela Mji, Centre for Rehabilitation Studies, Stellenbosch University, South Africa, and Mr A.K. Dube, The Secretariat of the African Decade for Persons with Disability.

This research investigates how disability can be put on the agenda of national and international development initiatives. It focuses on how research evidence can be utilised to inform the policy environment (such as PRSPs and SWAps), development institutions (such as the IMF, World Bank and WHO), as well as less formal local, community and grass-roots decision making and inclusion efforts.

A-PODD will undertake four country case studies: in Sierra Leone, a country emerging from conflict that resulted in many people being disabled; Malawi and Uganda, the only two African countries that have Ministries for people with disabilities; and Ethiopia, the second most populous country in Africa, with significant geographical barriers and a highly dispersed population, presenting significant challenges to the inclusion of people with disability.

Our comparative analysis will inform disability policy and implementation within the region. Barriers and facilitators will be identified along implementation pathways, and so too will local means and mechanisms of addressing these. Country reports will be discussed at a concluding workshop to which governments, civil society, donors, researchers and others will be invited. A code of best practice will be drawn up for Moving Evidence to Action on African Disability Policy.

Other collaborating partners on this project are:

International Partners:
Department of Psychology at Stellenbosch University
Southern African Federation of the Disabled
Ministry of Persons with Disabilities and the Elderly, Government of Malawi
Human Sciences Research Council, South Africa
South African Medical Research Council’s Cochrane Centre
SINTEF Health Research (Norway)
World Bank

Irish Partners:
Institute for Nursing Research, University of Ulster Law & Policy Research Unit, NUI Galway.
National Institute for Intellectual Disability, Trinity College Dublin
Department of Economics, Trinity College Dublin.

Bursary
Research Assistants will be appointed in the range EUR8,000-10,000 (Euro)

Applications
Interested applicants should send
1) A statement of interest – 1 page
2) A Curriculum Vitae -
3) Contact details for at least two referees (at least one of which should be an academic).

For any quiries, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Please forward your application to:

Dr Tsitsi Chataika (Post doctoral Research Fellow)
E-mail: tchataika@sun.ac.za

Dr Tsitsi Chataika – Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Stellenbosch University
Tygerberg Campus
Faculty of Health Science
Centre for Rehabilitation Studies
African Policy On Disability and Development (A-PODD) Project
P.O Box 7505
Tygerberg, 7505
South Africa
Tel: +27 219389816 (office)
+27 7764085148 (Cell/Mobile)
Fax:+27 219146875



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Dear all,
The summer school advertised below is of interest to students of
linguistics focusing on language documentation and description. The
summer school has several sign linguistics courses. Courses may be in
English or French. At this point it is not clear yet whether sign language interpretation can be provided. Questions, comments, and feedback on the issue of sign language interpretation should please be directed to the people coordinating the courses (3lsummerschool@googlemail.com), NOT to We Can Do.

www.hrelp.org/events/3L/index.html

Bonjour à tous,
Voici l’annonce de l’école d’été 3L sur la documentation et
description des langues orales et signées. Il y a des courses en
Anglais et en Français. Actuellement,le question d’interpretation en
LS n’est pas encore reglé.

www.hrelp.org/events/3L/index_fr.html

The Department of Linguistics at the School of Oriental and African
Studies is proud to announce the second 3L International Summer
School on Language Documentation and Description to be held in London beginning on 22nd June and ending on 3rd July 2009. The summer school is a joint initiative of the universities of Lyon, Leiden and SOAS, London as the 3L consortium, and will have two weeks of courses in a range of areas in documentation and description, two conferences, including a student conference, films showings and a number of social events. For details have a look at www.hrelp.org/events/3L/index.html
(or www.hrelp.org/events/3L/index_fr.html en français).

Enrolment for the summer school opens on 20th February, and there will be a discount rate available until 11th May. Scholarships are available to cover fees and accommodation, and to cover fees, accommodation and travel for attendees from a country outside the OECD. There is information about this on the website.

Also, please pass this information to other people who might be
interested in the summer school. If you have any questions write to
3lsummerschool@googlemail.com



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[Note from We Can Do editor: Many developing countries are required to develop a "Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper" (PRSP) as a condition for receiving debt relief from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This strategy paper is meant to describe how the country will reduce poverty among its citizens. A country's PRSP can have a profound impact on the policies and programs it implements to fight poverty. But not all PRSPs are fully inclusive of people with disabilities. This can mean they are left behind while others are gaining new opportunities to lift themselves out of poverty. Rosangela Berman Bieler, at the Inter-American Institute on Disability recently circulated the following email on the mailing list for the Global Partnership on Disability and Development describing how people with disabilities were included in the process of developing the PRSP in Mozambique.]

by Rosangela Berman Bieler

Dear Colleagues:

This message is to share a brief report on the Inclusive Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper project in Mozambique, launched in January in Maputo. Our civil society counterparts in Mozambique are FAMOD (Forum of Disability Organizations) and Handicap International. Maria Reina and Deepti Samant of the Global Partnership on Disability and Development Secretariat also joint us for part of the mission.

During the mission, we could establish many alliances with local and international agencies and government officials. Among the various activities that we were involved, we had a very good and participatory DPO training with 25 leaders of FAMOD. Following the meeting, FAMOD is constituting a working group, composed by civil society organizations, to follow up on country Projects like the FTI on Education for All, the Mozambique Tourism Anchor Program (IFC), School Health (MoE), HIV-AIDS and other possible entry points.

We also had a presentation meeting for general stakeholders, held at the World Bank Office in MZ. The activity was a success – full house and many potential partners from all sectors, very interested in working with inclusive approaches for the next cycle of the Country’s poverty reduction plan that may follow the current PARPA, finishing in 2009.

Besides other Inclusive PRSP training and activities to be held in MZ during 2009, we are also planning with GPDD, an International Seminar on Accessibility and Inclusive Tourism in Maputo, in June, and we are looking forward to be able to work in alliance with all the agencies working in the field as well. Inclusive approaches in Tourism can generate local accessibility and development for those who live in the country. Mozambique can really benefit from such an initiative.

In the field of Education, we are very excited with the possibility of having the local NGOs and Networks – such as the Education for All Network that accompanied us during the events – to interact and influence the school construction that will happen now, for the FTI, to make sure they are built accessible.

We are also working in synchrony with the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities, that will go on until 2019. It is possible that MZ hosts the launching of the African Campaign on HIV-AIDS and Disability in October. There are two major FAMOD projects going on in the field and hopefully this can also generate good mainstreaming opportunities.

Our plan is to involve other Portuguese Speaking Countries in most of these activities, as language is on other important cause of exclusion from participation. Hopefully Development Agencies working in other Lusophone countries in Africa (Angola, Cape Verde, Guiné Bissau, Sao Tomé and Prince), and also in East Timor, will be able to partner with this initiative and facilitate this process as well.

All the best,

Rosangela Berman Bieler
Inclusive Development Specialist

Inter-American Institute on Disability & Inclusive Development
- Doing our part on the construction of a society for all -

Rosangela Berman Bieler
Executive Director
Inter-American Institute on Disability & Inclusive Development
Website: www.iidi.org

[Another Note from We Can Do editor: People who wish to learn more about the PRSP process, and how it can be more inclusive of people with disabilities, are encouraged to consult the on-line manual, "Making PRSP Inclusive" at http://www.making-prsp-inclusive.org/]



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International Fellowships Program (IFP), West Africa
Application deadline for 2010/11 academic year is February 27, 2009. If you have missed the application deadline for the 2010/11 academic year, then please consult the Association of African Universities IFP web site directly to learn about next year’s application opportunity for the 2011/12 or subsequent academic years.
http://www.aau.org/ifp/announce.htm

FORD FOUNDATION

International Fellowships Program (IFP), West Africa. 2010/11 Academic year

The International Fellowships Program (IFP) is a program supported by the Ford Foundation, and coordinated in West Africa by the Association of African Universities (AAU) in collaboration with Pathfinder International in *Nigeria and West African Research Center (WARC ) in Senegal. IFP provides fellowships for advanced study to exceptional individuals who will use their education to further development in their own countries and greater social and economic justice worldwide. IFP fellowships will be awarded to applicants from diverse backgrounds, including social groups and communities that lack systematic access to higher education.

[Note to We Can Do readers: The official announcement from the Ford Foundation does not specifically reference students with disabilities. But you could point out to them that people with disabilities are frequently denied opportunities to access education at all levels, from primary school through higher education. The UK Department of International Development indicates that, out of 77 million children not enrolled in primary school, one-third have disabilities.]

It is expected that 46 Fellowships will be awarded in West Africa for the 2010/11 academic year.

The application period for the 2010/11 Awards will be from December 1, 2008 to February 27, 2009. Late applications will NOT be accepted.

Again, if you have missed the application deadline for the 2010/11 academic year, then please consult the Association of African Universities IFP web site directly to learn about next year’s application opportunity for the 2011/12 or subsequent academic years.
http://www.aau.org/ifp/announce.htm

To see the announcement for the February 27, 2009, deadline, consult: http://www.aau.org/ifp/announce.htm



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Handicap International is looking for Local Diagnostic Expert
COUNTRY : Mozambique CITY : Maputo
Starting date: 01/04/09 (April 1, 2009)
Length of the assignment : one year
Closing date for application : 01/03/09 (March 1, 2009) Advertisement reference : HB-LDE-Moz0902

Handicap International is an international organisation specialised in the field of disability. Non-governmental, non-religious, non-political and non-profit-making, it works alongside people with disabilities, whatever the context, in response to humanitarian crises and the effects of extreme poverty. Handicap International implements programmes of assistance to persons and local organisations, inclusion programmes and programmes focusing on the fight against the main causes of disability. It runs projects in almost 60 countries, with the support of a network of 8 national associations ( Germany, Belgium, Canada, United-States, Luxembourg, United Kingdom and Switzerland)
The organisation employs almost 3300 people worldwide, 330 of whom work in France and in its European and North American sections.
For more details on the association: http://www.handicap-international.fr/en/s/index.html

JOB CONTEXT :
This project is the result of a short emergency project, which objective was to support the victims of PAIOL, the arsenal explosion in Maputo in 2007. The PAIOL project highlights the lack of knowledge and skills of basic services to welcome and take care of people with disabilities. It was also the opportunity to work with the municipalities of Maputo and Matola, and to make a first assessment on the situation of people with disabilities.

This post is based in RAVIM offices, our principal partner for the project. The characteristics of the relationships between the Local Diagnostic Expert, Handicap International Project Team and RAVIM will be detailed within the Partnership Agreement Addendum between Handicap International and RAVIM.

JOB DESCRIPTION :
Challenges and goals :
The decentralization process is quite complex in Maputo and Matola: all the different levels of governmental representatives are present (district, municipal, province and nation). One of the issues will be to get involved and coordinate with all these different governmental levels, in a same objective. The local diagnostic should clarify which are the main competences for each administrative level: district, municipal, province and nation, in the frame of the decentralization process.

Activities :
In collaboration with RAVIM, you will support the realisation of a local diagnosis on the social and economical situation of people with disability, the social representation of Disability and the situation of existing healthcare and social services, regarding the welcoming of vulnerable people (including people with disability and people living with or affected by HIV/AIDS).
Your responsibilities will be to:
==> carry out the local diagnosis
==> analyze the local diagnostic results and propose recommendations in respect to the project objectives.
==> create a database and directory of services
==> organize the dissemination of the results of the local diagnosis among the civil society and government
==> prepare the final evaluation of the project, based on monitoring tools and mechanisms to evaluate the progress of the situation of people with disability and healthcare and social services at regular intervals
==> capitalize documentation and tools used during these activities

CANDIDATE PROFILE :
Mandatory :
We are looking for someone with a Master in Local development field, Social sciences or a Diploma in the healthcare and social sector. Ideally with experience in implementing local/territorial and participative diagnosis or/and realisation of quantitative and qualitative survey,

You have good analysis and synthesis capacities and a good team spirit, you have already worked on mobilising people around a common objective.

Complementary :
Experience in a developing country, knowledge on Disability, inclusive approach and HIV/AIDS

REQUIRED LANGUAGE SKILLS : Portuguese mandatory, English a plus

JOB ENVIRONMENT : possibility to travel with family, access to international school and hospital

EMPLOYMENT CONDITIONS :
Volunteer : 750 or 850 Euros monthly indemnity + living allowance paid on the field + accommodation + 100% medical cover + repatriation insurance
Salary : 2000 to 2300 gross salary + 457 Euros expatriation allowance + 100% medical cover + repatriation insurance + family policy

Please send resume and covering letter with the reference: HB-LDE-Moz0902 to :
HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL – 14, avenue Berthelot – 69361 LYON CEDEX 07
by Email : recrut04@handicap-international.org
or by our website : www.handicap-international.org
Please do not telephone

Candidates from Canada or the United States, and nationals of these countries, should send their application to the following address :
HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL CANADA
1819 Boulevard René Lévesque, bureau 401 – MONTRÉAL, QUÉBEC – H3H 2P5
Or by email : jobs@handicap-international.ca or fax : 514-937-6685
Please do not telephone



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Skip directly to Resource List; Skip to bottom of page

Asides from this blog, where can you find information and resources on disability in developing countries? And, how can you network with other people in the field?

If you’re a regular We Can Do reader, you know that this site has links to many resources and organizations. (Looking for something specific? Consult the Navigating We Can Do page for search tips.) But this blog is not the only source of information you can use. Here is a list of many of the places I turn to when I am looking for new information to share with We Can Do readers. The information disseminated via these sources include conference and job announcements; leads on resources that might be helpful to grassroots disability advocates or international development professionals; and news about what is happening among disabled people in developing countries around the world.

All of the following resources are free. A few of the following resources are news distribution lists. This means a single administrator decides what emails will go out to the list. News distribution lists are best if you simply wish to receive announcements relevant to your interests. In most cases, it will not be possible to filter the content: either you receive everything that is sent through that list (by subscribing to it) or you receive nothing.

Many of these resources are email-based discussion groups. This means that each person who joins the mailing list has the right both to receive emails from other list members and also to send their own emails to the entire group. Email discussion lists are best if you wish to both exchange information (including sharing some of your own) and also network with like-minded people and colleagues.

I also include a few Facebook networking groups and other websites.

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Resources for Networking and Information Exchange

News Distribution Lists
Email-Based Discussion Groups
Other Networking Opportunities (Facebook)
Websites of Interest
Where Else Do I Receive Information From?

News Distribution Lists
These send you news and announcements to your email. Usually the list owner or editor decides what news they will circulate.

DPI (Disabled People International)
http://v1.dpi.org/lang-en/newsletter/index.php
Approximately once a week, Disabled People International circulates an email newsletter with short news items and announcements gathered from both developing and developed countries around the world. News can be sent to Dr. Cassandra Phillips at info@dpi.org.

CSID (Centre for Services and Information on Disability
http://www.csidnetwork.org/RegForm.htm
This international news distribution list is based in Bangladesh, but disseminates journal articles, event announcements, and news from around the world.

Intl-Dev
http://gri.gallaudet.edu/mailman/listinfo/intl-dev
A news distribution list on international development, including (but not limited to) an emphasis on disability issues. Distributes announcements about upcoming conferences, events, job posts, training sessions, and other opportunities.

International Development and Disability News
http://list-manage.com/subscribe.phtml?id=071ab7edca
Mobility International USA (MIUSA) runs this email newsletter, each of which includes a few short news items related to international development and disability.

We Can Do blog
http://wecando.wordpress.com/subscribe-to-we-can-do/
You’re reading this blog right now! But, did you know that you can sign up to receive an email each time new posts are added to the We Can Do blog? This may be helpful for busy people who might forget to check the blog on their own, or for people who are anxious to learn about new resources or opportunities within hours after they are posted. Follow the URL link to read the instructions.

WNUSP-News (World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry)
http://mail.oism.info/mailman/listinfo/wnusp-news_oism.info
This email newsletter is used to discuss global mental health, social justice issues, United Nations actions, World Health Organization statements, and other issues focused on global advocacy.

Ghulam Nabi Nizamani’s personal news distribution list
ghulamnabi.nizamani@gmail.com
Ghulam Nabi Nizamani is a very active disability advocate who disseminates many news articles, conference and training announcements, and other material via his personal list of email contacts. Most of his material comes from, or focuses on, the South Asian region. But some focuses on other regions. Contact him directly via email (NOT at this blog) at ghulamnabi.nizamani@gmail.com to ask to be added to his distribution list. He travels frequently and sometimes cannot process his email for several weeks at a time, so it may take time for him to respond.

Human Rights Africa
http://www.africandecade.org/humanrightsafrica
This electronic newsletter is disseminated about three times a year by the Secretariat of the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities. You can read past issues, or sign up for future issues, by following the link.

Global Development Briefing
www.devex.com
This website supports an email news distribution list that specializes in job announcements from around the world in the international development field. NOT specific to disability issues. If you want specifically a disability-related job then you may need to skim through many irrelevant job posts before you see something that suits your skills and interests. People who want employment in a specific country or city face a similar challenge.

Idealist.org Job Board
http://www.idealist.org
No, I don’t normally use this board when I’m looking for We Can Do post ideas. But this is an excellent resource for people looking for either job opportunities or volunteer opportunities around the world. It even includes a few on-line opportunities for people who need or wish to volunteer from home. NOT a disability-specific resource, but does sometimes post some disability-related jobs or volunteer opportunities.

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Email-based Discussion Groups
These allow you to network with other people, and exchange ideas, resources, and announcements. Most allow you the choice to interact via either email or the web (check for “groups.yahoo” in the URL). Others are solely email-based.

Global Partnership on Disability and Development
http://gpdd-online.org/mailinglist/
This email discussion group is moderated: if you try to send an email to the list, then it may often be delayed by several hours or days until the moderator is able to process it. Members include international development professionals with an interest in disability issues; some representatives of grassroots DPOs; and individual people who are interested in, or learning about, the field of disability and international development.

International Network of Women with Disabilities (INWWD)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/inwwd/
An email-based discussion list for women with disabilities around the world. Participants can use the list to exchange knowledge and experience and coordinate efforts with other women with disabilities to promote human rights and inclusion.

IDA_CRPD_Forum
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IDA_CRPD_Forum/
This is the official International Disability Alliance (IDA) discussion group committed to promoting the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. For discussing official business of the IDA in relation to the CRPD. Some members in this list also participate in the AdHoc_IDC list (below), and some do not.

AdHoc_IDC
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AdHoc_IDC/
This list was originally founded while the CRPD was being written. It is no longer the official IDA list (see IDA_CRPD_Forum above), but some people continue to use this list to discuss disability rights and the CRPD. Some members of this list also participate in IDA_CRPD_Forum, and some do not.

RatifyNow
http://www.ratifynow.org
The RatifyNow organization works to mobilize movements to ratify the CRPD in more countries, including the United States and elsewhere. Membership in the organization is free for both individual people and for organizations. Members and supporters use the email discussion list to exchange ideas for action.

Disability Research List
https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=disability-research
This list is intended for all those interested in research as it affects disabled people. It provides a forum for the exchange of ideas, information and news, among researchers and others working primarily within a social interpretation of disability. Some posts are UK or Euro centric, but sometimes discussion covers developing countries.

AsiaPacificDisabilities
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AsiaPacificDisability/
This email discussion list is intended to focus on disability issues in the Asia-Pacific region. Some participants also share information from other regions as well.

IIDCWG (Indigenous people with disabilities)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IIDCWG/
Indigenous peoples with disabilities from both developing and developed countries around the world use this email discussion group to exchange information and ideas for their mutual advocacy efforts. The listowner can be contacted at IIDCWG-owner@yahoogroups.com

EENET_Eastern_Africa
http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/eenet_eastern_africa/
Participants in this email-based discussion group exchange knowledge and information related to disability inclusive education in Eastern Africa.

DeafStudiesAfrica
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DeafStudies-Africa/
Participants use this email discussion group to exchange information, and debate ideas related to Deaf Studies and sign languages in Africa.

deafintl
http://patriot.net/~ashettle/deafintl
Devoted to issues related to deaf people in developing countries. This is an extremely quiet list. But once every few months, someone distributes an announcement or tries to start a discussion.

Disability and Human Rights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/disability_and_human_rights/
This tiny, email discussion group currently has only 25 members; discussion focuses on disability and human rights around the world.

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Other Networking Opportunities (Facebook)
Another tool for networking is Facebook. Facebook operates through the web. Sign up for an account; explore the resources at Facebook; and join one or more networking groups in the language(s) of your choice. If you are new to Facebook, it is free and takes only a few minutes to sign up.

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Networking Among Disabled People in Developing Countries and Allies
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=58529958419 (English)
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=48418118883 (French)
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=49162324925 (Italian)
Looking for an informal way to meet other people on-line who share your passion for human rights, poverty, and international development issues among people with disabilities in developing countries? Consider joining this free Facebook group. You can post messages on the “Wall,” or participate in the Discussion Board. Currently available in English, French, or Italian. I’m hoping people will eventually step forward to create similar groups in more languages. If you do not already have a Facebook account, then it only takes a few minutes to sign up, and is free.

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Websites of Interest
These are websites that may be worth exploring, particularly for resources and publications.

AskSource
http://www.asksource.info/res_library/disability.htm
This website provides links to many resources and toolkits related to international development and health. Some resources are targeted at grassroots organizations in developing countries, others are targeted at researchers and international development professionals. Includes a section on disability-related resources (follow the link). I sometimes browse this database when looking for ideas of resources to feature at We Can Do. But I will never have time to cover everything that deserves attention. If you haven’t already explored it on your own, please do.

Secretariat of the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities
http://www.africandecade.org/trainingmaterials
On this page, you can find training manuals for disability advocates that need to plan projects and evaluate them; build their capacity; learn how to run advocacy or lobbying campaigns; or train journalists in writing about the human rights of people with disabilities. I have featured a few of these resources at We Can Do, but not all of them. Worth exploring.

Enabling Education Network (EENET)
http://www.eenet.org.uk/
An excellent site for educators in developing countries who work with students with disabilities. Click on “search” and try a key word search (for example, “violence,” or “sign language,” or the name of your country).

We Can Do blog roll
Don’t miss the We Can Do blog roll. At the very bottom of every page at this blog site, you can see a list of links to many international- and national-level disability-oriented organizations, on-line resources, blog sites, and more. Simply scroll down the screen to start exploring. You might discover an interesting organization or a helpful resource.

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Where Else Do I Receive Information From?
One important source of information for many announcements, resource links, and news items that I post at We Can Do is … YOU! Many of the items posted at this blog are submitted by We Can Do readers. If you have an announcement, news item, or resource suggestion that you think would be interesting for blog readers, please do contact me at ashettle [at] patriot.net (use an @ at sign in place of [at] and remove the spaces).

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Subscribe to We Can Do
Learn how to receive an email alert when new material is posted at We Can Do (wecando.wordpress.com).

Other Resources at We Can Do
Catch up with the news; explore resources, toolkits, or funding and fellowship opportunities; find research, reports, papers, or statistics; or look up conferences, events, call for papers, or education/training opportunities.

We Can Do Copyright
This blog post is copyrighted to We Can Do (wecando.wordpress.com). Currently, only two web sites have on-going permission to syndicate (re-post) We Can Do blog posts in full: BlogAfrica.com and www.RatifyNow.org. Other sites are most likely plagiarizing this post without permission.

CCBRT is Seeking to Employ a Project Manager for a PEPFAR funded Project

“Making HIV/Aids Strategies Inclusive for People with Disabilities”

Application Deadline February 21, 2009

*Introduction*
Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation Tanzania (CCBRT) is a locally registered Non Governmental Organization (NGO) first established in 1994. It is the largest indigenous provider of disability rehabilitation services in the country. CCBRT aim is to improve the quality of life of people living with disabilities as well as their families and to enable them to claim and use their legitimate human rights.

*Objective*
The PEPFAR project is aimed to considerably increase access for people with disabilities and their care givers to appropriate HIV/AIDS prevention, care, treatment and support services in Tanzania. The project is funded by PEPFAR for the duration of 3 years beginning 2009. CCBRT will coordinate the project in collaboration with the Government of Tanzania, civil society and other stakeholders.

* *

*The Project Manager will have the following responsibilities*

· Setting up, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the project.

· Recruitment of part time HIV/AIDS and Disability Coordinators in consultation with the Community Program Director.

· Setting up of the National Platform in consultation with governmental, non-governmental and international stakeholders.

· Selection of target districts and partners in consultation with TACAIDS and NACP.

· Coordination and monitoring of the development of minimum guidelines (VCT, care and treatment), development and distribution of various Information Education and Communication (IEC) materials, and respective training manuals.

· Initiation, coordination and evaluation of trainings in collaboration with technical experts and target organizations.

· Further development of IEC, training materials and programs after lessons learnt in collaboration with technical experts.

· Establishment of follow up mechanisms to support trained experts.

· Establishment of collaborations and referral mechanisms between district authorities, disability and HIV/AIDS organizations.

· Provision and coordination of technical / advisory support to partners.

· Assessment and approval of small project proposals for infrastructure adjustments and campaigns in collaboration with CBM US and a representative of the National Platform.

· Development of public awareness programs on disability, equal right and HIV/AIDS.

· Generation of lessons learnt and continuous integration during the project implementation.

· Development of a reader on making HIV/Aids strategies inclusive in collaboration with technical experts.

· Development of annual work plans and setting of annual targets.

· Compilation of narrative / financial reports in collaboration with the CCBRT Finance Manager.

· Coordination and support of the work of the CCBRT Health, HIV/AIDS and Disability Coordinator and three HIV/AIDS and Disability Coordinators.

*Experience*
The project manager should have

· a minimum of 5 years working experience in HIV/AIDS

· In depth knowledge about HIV/AIDS strategy framework in Tanzania including HSHSP, NGPRS, NMSF as well as HIV/AIDS related working structures and relevant stakeholders in Tanzania.

· Experience in guideline and training programme development

· Proven working experience with vulnerable groups, preferably persons with disabilities

· Good analytic, report writing and presentation skills

· Experience in coordinating and managing larger teams

· Strong written and oral communication ability, both Kiswahili and English

CCBRT will offer an attractive salary package.

The Project manager is expected to start working latest 16th March 2009.

*How to apply*
If you believe you are the ideal candidate with the necessary background, please submit a letter of application, curriculum vitae detailing your experience, supportive documents as well as contact details of three referees to info@ccbrt.or.tz or by post to

CCBRT Executive Director/ P.O Box 23310, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Tel: +255 (0) 22 260 1543 / +255 (0) 22 260 2192 Fax: +255 (0) 22 2601544

Email: info@ccbrt.or.tz Website: http://www.ccbrt.or.tz

*People with disability are highly encouraged to apply.*

*Closing date for applications: 21st Feb* (only short listed candidates will be contacted)



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IMMIDIATE VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

• POSITION: Expatriate Lecturers (2)
• Sign Language & Deaf Culture
Position needed: – Lecturer in Linguistics (with expertise in sign language linguistics and/or deaf studies)

Addis Ababa University’s Department of Linguistics has launched the Bachelors of Arts degree in Ethiopian Sign Language and Deaf Culture this academic year (2008-2009). It is the first BA degree course in Sign Language provided in the African continent.

The main objectives of the BA program are to encourage and train:
• sign language teachers in teaching sign language courses at secondary and tertiary levels
• sign linguists in conducting research on Ethiopian Sign Language in order to promote the use, status and function of Ethiopian Sign Language.
• sign language interpreters in the interpreting profession

The program is to:
• Promote collaborative research on Ethiopian Sign Language in conjunction with other institutions of higher learning at local, regional and international levels.
• Provide advisory services to organizations, schools, institutions that work to promote Ethiopian Sign Language and Deaf culture, organize short-term trainings for people involved in Sign language and Deaf Education, compilation of Sign language dictionary etc.

It is a three year regular university program which gives modules focusing on sign language, linguistics, Deaf Culture. Some of the modules the Lecturer is expected to be familiar with are:
• Sign language and Society
• Sign language literature and performance
• Trends in Deaf Education
• The sociology of signing family
• Sign language interpretation and translation
• Deafness in broader perspectives,
• Communication Support for Deaf People (i.e. note-taking, interpreting etc)

We may require the expatriate lecturers (if given sufficient skills needed) to assist us in doing a feasibility study into setting up the African Centre for Deaf Studies and Sign Language Studies at our university.

Contractual time:
The Department of Linguistics and Philology seeks to employ two full-time Lecturer positions. The minimum contractual time is two years as of March 2009 with the possibility of extending the contract.

Requirement:
• Good sign language skills, preferably in American Sign Language
• Postgraduate diploma in Sign linguistics, Deaf Studies, or related field or qualification;
• Knowledge of Deaf history and culture;
• Extensive experience in working with the Deaf community;

The ideal candidates for the position should be a self-starter, detail-oriented, and able to handle multiple assignments and operate in team work and an intense environment.

Salary: details given upon requesting

Application:
Interested candidates are required to send or email a letter of application stating their interest, their curriculum vitae and two letters of references from academics to:

Eyasu Hailu Tamene
Ethiopian Sign Language Program Coordinator
Addis Ababa University, Department of Linguistics
P.O. Box 1176 Addis Ababa
Ethiopia

For further information, please email Eyasu Tamene at: tusaye11@gmail.com



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[Note a limited number of scholarships for conference participants from developing or low-income countries.]

Dear all,

If you are a user or survivor of psychiatry (a person who has experienced madness or mental health problems, or who has used or survived mental health services), you are welcome to join the WNUSP General Assembly in Kampala, Uganda, March 16-20, 2009.

If you are not a user or survivor yourself but would like to support WNUSP, please help WNUSP to connect with users and survivors in your country or region by forwarding them this email or introducing them to a member of the WNUSP board.

Thanks to everyone in the disability community for their solidarity.

Best wishes,
Tina Minkowitz

WNUSP GA – REGISTER NOW!!!
World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry

http://www.wnusp.net/

• • • WNUSP-News • • •

ANNOUNCEMENT: JANUARY 2009

Dear WNUSP Friends,

This edition of WNUSP news features the Final Announcement for our General Assembly and World Conference.

Final Invitation – Third Announcement
REGISTER NOW!!! Making our Rights a Reality Human Rights in the Age of the CRPD WNUSP General Assembly and Conference, March 16-20 2009, Kampala, Uganda WNUSP has the pleasure to invite you to it’s third general assembly and conference in Kampala, Uganda. After Vancouver, Canada in 2001, Vejle, Denmark in 2004, we are happy to hold our assembly in Africa for the first time and thank our hosts Mental Health Uganda. Delegates from WNUSP member organisations are invited to attend the conference and GA. The conference is open to users and survivors of psychiatry from all regions of the world. Priority will be given to members. If you have not yet joined but are interested in becoming a member, please do so when registering for the conference. All participants who are able to do so, are asked to contribute at least 100 US $ (150 US $) to the overall conference costs. Those who can afford more are kindly asked to contribute 250 US $ or donate even more money in order to enable us to support the participation of delegates from poorer regions. Please register as soon as possible, if you are interested.

Only people from poorer countries can apply for scholarships. We are committed to making this conference as inclusive as possible and will do our best to support scholarships for users and survivors from low income countries. We will only be able to support traveling costs for a limited number of participants (see the attached document). Please use every means you have to raise funds for their participation. Participants have to cover their own travel costs. Participants from developed countries are asked to organise their travel plans themselves. If you have already registered and can fund your own travel costs, you can book your tickets now. If you have any possibility to support WNUSP and MHU with funding the general assembly or contribute to travel costs for other participants, please let us know.

Please register quickly since participation is limited. You can register via the WNUSP website. www.wnusp.net. Registration for the conference is now possible via the WNUSP website. For more information on the conference, follow the link to http://wnusp.rafus.dk/wnusp-general-assembly-and-conference-2009.html

MEMBERS’ NEWS NOTICE
The WNUSP Newsletter aims to present the global struggles and achievements of users and survivors of psychiatry. We invite all members of the WNUSP to write in, sharing your views and giving news about your activities. News reports must be in English, brief (250 words) and giving your name and contact details. You may also submit ideas or proposals for articles to be considered for publication in the newsletter. Write to the Editor, WNUSP-News at newsletter@wnusp.net

Moosa Salie,
Facilitator WNUSP newsletter
Co-Chair WNUSP
Secretary PANUSP

WNUSP-News mailing list
WNUSP-News@oism.info
http://mail.oism.info/mailman/listinfo/wnusp-news_oism.info

Information to consider when applying for a scholarship

Scholarships will be allocated to WNUSP affiliated organizations and individual members to send delegates to the GA based on the following criteria.

• Only a limited number of scholarships will be available

• You only qualify to apply if you live in the Global South, which includes some Arab states (non oil producing), certain agreed upon Eastern European countries, India and other developing Asian and Pacific-rim countries, all of Africa, Latin and Central America.

• Preference will be given to invited speakers from the Global South in allocating scholarships

• Due consideration will be given to a balance in gender and regional representation when deciding on allocating scholarships.

• Applying for a scholarship does not automatically guarantee receiving it. Applicants will be assessed on their potential to add value to the proceedings of the General Assembly and furthering the work of the WNUSP.

• The decisions of the GA organizing committee regarding the allocation of scholarships cannot be queried afterwards.

Conference information at: http://wnusp.rafus.dk/wnusp-general-assembly-and-conference-2009.html



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[Please note that this blog post advertises two different job posts, both located in Francistown, Botswana with the same organization. Read carefully before applying.]

The Southern Africa Federation Of the Disabled (SAFOD) is seeking to engage the services of dynamic, qualified and experienced professionals for the positions of Research Programme Director and Information and Communication Manager. Both positions will be based in the SAFOD Research Centre in Francistown, Botswana. The following are the new positions that need to be filled in the SRP as soon as possible; see Application details at the bottom for instructions in how to apply:

1.RESEARCH PROGRAMME DIRECTOR:
Reporting to the SAFOD Director General, the Research Programme Director will have overall responsibility for the management of the SAFOD Research Programme.This would include all aspects of the professional, financial and administrative management of the programme. The Research director will also be accountable to DFID Central Research Department.

Management Responsibilities:
·Co-ordination of the Research Programme with the SAFOD member DPOs and with other disability programmes in the region to avoid duplication and to promote synergies;
·Ensuring gender dimensions are mainstreamed into research themes;
·Terminating unsuccessful activities;
·Act asan ex-officio member of the SRP Technical Advisory Board (TAB);
·Ensuring timely delivery of the activities of the SRP;
·Reviewing the progress of the SRP in terms of potential impact on disability policy and practice;
·Disseminating and promoting the use of SRP-generated knowledge for the benefit of disabled people in SAFOD member countries;
·Line management of SRP staff, which includes a Research Programme Manager and a Communictions Officer;
·Financial management of the budget and expenditure of the SRP;
·Safe-guarding any database of knowledge generated by the SRP so that it remains accessible after the research programme ends;
·Safeguarding any work that may be commissioned to contribute to the achievement of the purposes established for the SRP.
SRP Implementation:
Overall responsibility for implementing the SRP programme.
Development of the SRP will include the following tasks:
·Identification of future research activities;
·Identifying the stakeholders for research outputs within and beyond the SRP,
·With the advice of the Communications Manager, establish the means by which these outputs may be used and how they should be packaged and promoted;
·Establishing strategic relationships with SRP partners and with other collaborating research institutions in target countries to promote the transfer of knowledge to stakeholders;
·Development of new consortium milestones for agreement with DFID.
The Research Director may identify and commission work to achieve the outputs within the annual budgets and the financial limit set by the contract.
General
Taking into consideration the views of the Technical Advisory Board, establish all necessary arrangements to achieve the SRP outputs in a cost-effective way and to achieve best value for money in the commissioning of activities;
Establish and maintain liaison with relevant DFID advisers and with local institutions in SAFOD-member countries in which research activities are to be implemented;
Set up criteria for commissioning research and ensure research proposals are fully appraised to ensure that quality, developmental relevance and demand criteria are met;
Monitor progress against the outputs and milestones, and producing regular financial, operational and technical reports within prescribed deadlines;
Monitor SRP expenditure against the approved annual budget allocation and the financial limit with accurate forecasting of expenditure and submit quarterly and annual financial reports in the format prescribed by DFID. Provide additional financial information as required.
Prepare, for submission to DFID and with TAB endorsement, annual work plans and annual reports in the format prescribed and participate as required in SAFOD monitoring and review activities;
Facilitate access to the SRP for the Mid-Term Review of the programme mid-way through the programme cycle.

2.INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION MANAGER
The Communications Manager will be an expert in communicating research. The post will be full-time and the post-holder will report to the Research Programme Director.
The Communications Manager will have overall responsibility for planning and implementing a communications strategy. The post will involve close engagement with the research work, people, debates and partners across a range of countries, especially those where SAFOD is operating. This post will be crucial in helping the programme to develop policy-influencing strategies linked to research results. The postholder will need to combine strong interpersonal and communications skills with the vision, networking skills and entrepreneurial ability to develop and implement a communications strategy which promotes research to a wide audience.
Responsibilities include the following:
Take the lead to identify and establish the means by which research products will be packaged, promoted and adopted, inter alia:
·Planning and implementing a communications strategy for the SRP in consultation with research and management staff;
·Undertaking a communications assessment for the entire programme, including the capacity and needs of the SRP partners to collaborate and deliver communications components;
·Undertaking stakeholder analyses, in collaboration with research staff, to identify key audiences for research findings at different stages of research;
·Ensuring the identification and establishment of effective dissemination of research findings to key stakeholders;
·Packaging of research in a form appropriate for use by stakeholders, including disabled people;
·Working with research staff to produce outputs, mostly in print and electronic formats, such as policy briefings, resource guides, comments and opinion pieces, drawing on research findings as they emerge;
·Maintaining the SRP website, including monitoring of use and establishing subscription mechanisms for interested parties;
·Producing SRP newsletters, periodically;
·Promotion of research products to target institutions and beneficiaries;
·Syntheses of knowledge and lesson-learning on specific themes;
·Maintain effective relationships with SRP partners and with other collaborating research institutions in target countries to promote the transfer of knowledge to stakeholders;
·Ensure effective design and implementation of all research projects being conducted under the programme;
·Advise the Research Director on all matters relating to the implementation of the research programme and standard operating procedures and project management;
·Ensure that good relations are maintained in all the communities in which research is being conducted through regular and scheduled community meetings;
·Represent the programme at community functions and fora as required to provide information to community leaders /DPOs and partners about the programme and research conduct;
·Liaise with Director General to ensure local capacity building throughout SAFOD via sharing of experience in research management and, where appropriate, dissemination of key findings.
Person Specifications:
a)Experienced communications expert with a solid understanding of the processes for achieving evidence based research and targeted outputs for policy change;
b)Strong interpersonal communication skills to work and communicate with a variety of stakeholders including people of varied disabilities, academic research community; international development donors, disabled peoples’ organisations and so on;
c)Strong background and commitment to community based research and knowledge and skills of participatory learning and action research;
d)A social science degree or equivalent in communications and experience in the research field;
e)Excellent oral and/or written communications skills to work and communicate with people of varied disabilities, and capacity to edit and draft research reports and written out puts;
f)Computer literacy and Internet experience;
g)Knowledge in website and data base design;
h)Knowledge of a non-discriminatory society and that disability does not mean inability.
Key Result Areas:
·Development of a Communications Strategy to ensure the efficient and effective systems of dissemination and communication of SRP research products and findings to key stakeholders;
·Development of a capacity building programme to strengthen SRP member capacity to undertake disability research and disseminate findings;
·Establishment of outreach and mobilization programmes on disability research and related advocacy activities to effect change on the basis of key findings;
·Establishment and maintenance of a resource center holding documentation and information regarding disability policy and practice, as well as housing SRP programme research products;
·Maintenance of a database of SRP stakeholders as part of the communications strategy.

Application Details
Interested in these highly rewarding positions ?
Please send your applications, together with CVs, to the Personnel Assistant at:

Southern Africa Federation of the Disabled (SAFOD)
No. 19 Lobengula Street
Box 2247 Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
Tel: 263-9-69356; Fax: 263-9-62944
E: safod@netconnect.co.zw OR info@safod.org
Website: www.safod.org
SAFOD Regional Headquarters Botswana
Plot Number 6230 Tati River Plots
P. O. Box 3236 Nswazwi Complex
Francistown, Botswana
Tel/fax: +267 240 5156
Tel:+ 267 240 5164
E-mail: safod@botsnet.bw



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The University in Edinburgh, Scotland, is offering a scholarship for Tanzanian students for the 2009-2010 academic year. Students need to be enrolled at the Masters level. The application deadline is April 1, 2009.

The Julius Nyerere Master’s Scholarship will cover the full overseas tuition fee, living costs of £10,000, and a return flight from Tanzania to the UK. Details are available at http://www.scholarships.ed.ac.uk/postgraduate/internat/nyerere.htm

You can find details of Masters level education courses at http://www.ed.ac.uk/studying/postgraduate/finder/subjectarea.php?taught=Y&sid=14
Some examples include a program in deaf education; a program in inclusive and special education; a program in working with learners with visual impairments; a program in working with learners with specific learning difficulties; and many more.

Please send any queries direct to scholarships@ed.ac.uk



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INTERIGHTS. London, UK.

Closing date: February 09, 2009.
Description:

Internship for Lawyers Working on Disability in Africa
Equality Programme

INTERIGHTS’ Equality Programme is pleased to invite applications for an internship as part of the development and implementation of its work to advance the rights of people with disabilities in Africa. The three-month internship will begin in April 2009 and will be based in London.

This full-time placement will provide an opportunity for a lawyer with knowledge of disability issues and litigation experience in Africa to develop their legal skills whilst assisting our programme with:

· Legal research on international and comparative human rights law and practice with respect to the protection of the rights of people with disabilities;

· Preparation of materials for legal training on the application and development of equality standards;

· Strategic programme development.

Where possible, the intern may attend meetings with human rights practitioners, human rights lectures, or visit other international or national human rights organisations based in London.

INTERIGHTS will arrange and pay for travel. The intern will receive a monthly salary of £1,200. Accommodation is not provided but INTERIGHTS can advise on finding a suitable place to stay.

To Apply:

Before applying, applicants are encouraged to read the attached person specification. To apply please send a covering letter, a curriculum vitae indicating two referees and a recent writing sample of no more than two thousand words.

Applications should be sent to Chloe Marong, Legal Team Administrator, by email to cmarong@interights.org.
The closing date for applications is Monday 09 February 2009.

Persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Website: http://www.interights.org/Vacancies/index.htm
Article License: Copyright – Article License Holder: INTERIGHT

Person Specification
Essential
• Law qualification
• Extensive experience in litigating before domestic and/or regional courts in Africa
• Experience of working in the human rights sector in Africa
• Experience of working in the area of disability rights
• Sophisticated understanding of issues relating to the human rights of people with disabilities and relevant legal standards
• Strong research, analytical and writing skills
• Fluency in English

Desirable
• Connections with disabled people’s groups in home region / internationally
• Familiarity with international human rights standards and mechanisms
• Familiarity with non-discrimination and equality legal standards internationally
• Previous experience of working in an NGO setting
• Fluency in French

Persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

About INTERIGHTS
INTERIGHTS is an international legal centre based in London which develops and promotes the legal protection of human rights worldwide. Set up as a charity in 1982, in co-operation with lawyers, non-governmental organisations and judges, it has since promoted the effective use of human rights law by fully realising and exploiting all legal avenues available to protect these rights, and by providing greater global access to information on judicial decisions concerning human rights. INTERIGHTS holds consultative status with the United Nations’ Economic and Social Council, the Council of Europe and the African Commission for Human and Peoples’ Rights, and is authorised to present collective complaints under the European Social Charter. A registered charity, INTERIGHTS is dependent on grants from foundations and on donations from individuals. (See www.interights.org)

The Equality Programme works to address discrimination in many forms, based on disability, gender, race, ethnicity, religion and sexual orientation at national and regional level.

INTERIGHTS is committed to equal opportunities.



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The aim of the Disability Workshop Development Enterprise (DWDE) International Small Business Conference is to bring together entrepreneurs with disabilities and other key industry stakeholders to deliberate, share knowledge and exchange ideas on the fundamental building blocks for sustainable entrepreneurship development amongst people with disabilities. We would like to create the platform to give entrepreneurs with disabilities all the tools they need to become participants in the mainstream economy. This conference will be geared towards finding solutions for entrepreneurship amongst the disability sector.

Application deadline is January 31, 2009 for conference occurring April 6-7, 2009.

Please see the Invitation below for more details as well as the Registration Form and Events Pack, please feel free to contact the conference organizers with any queries.

Wendile Basse OR Mandy Barnes
Phone: +27 (0) 21 674 6139
Fax: +27 (0) 21 674 6238
dwderesearch@telkomsa.net

DISABILITY WORKSHOP DEVELOPMENT ENTERPRISE
21 CAVENDISH STREET
CLAREMONT
7735
TEL: 021 674 6139
FAX: 021 674 6238

DWDE- International Small Business Conference – 2009

SCULPTING ENTREPENEURS WITH DISABILITIES IN AFRICA
VENUE Cape Town International Convention Centre
DATE
6, 7th of April 2009
PRICE 2,500 ZAR
• Includes Gala Dinner
CONTACT PERSON Wandile Basse
TEL 021 674 6139
FAX 021 674 6238
EMAIL dwderesearch@telkomsa.net

PAYMENT DETAILS
BANK DETAILS
Account Holder DISABILITY WORKSHOP DEVELOPMENT ENTERPRISE
Account Number 28-004-575-1
Branch Number 051001

SWIFT CODE SBZAZAJJ
Branch Claremont, Cape Town, South Africa
PAYMENT REFERENCE Initial + Surname+CONF
Eg: Thembi Green
TGreenCONF

[Note to We Can Do readers: People with disabilities will want to communicate closely with the conference organizers to determine whether they are able to meet your accommodation needs. For example, the informational materials I received about this conference was partly in Word format but also with some separate information in purely visual PDF format (NOT the kind converted from Word but from a JPEG image). People who access electronic materials through a screen reader will want to ensure that they are prepared to provide all information in formats accessible to them. Their conference information does not clarify whether they will be providing sign language interpreters or captioning for deaf participants. Nor does it clarify whether adaptations will be made for people with intellectual disabilities, etc.]



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Researchers who need to locate journal articles and other publications about people with disabilities throughout history in developing countries face significant barriers. People with disabilities outside of North America and Europe tend to be invisible in much of the published literature and throughout history.

Researchers can consult a list of annotated bibliographies at the Center for International Rehabilitation Research Information and Exchange (CIRRIE) as a starting point in seeking out thousands of articles that may meet their needs.

These bibliographies do not directly link to the articles in question. In many cases, I suspect these articles may not exist on-line. But the bibliographies could be used to help researchers know what publications they should seek out through the inter-library loan program at their university library.

A few examples of annotated bibliographies include: Disability in the Middle East; Disability and Social Responses in Some Southern African Nations; Disability and Social Response in Afghanistan and Pakistan; Disability & Deafness in North East Africa; Disability and Deafness in East Asia: Social and Educational Responses, from Antiquity to Recent Times; Sign, Gesture, and Deafness in South Asia and South-West Asian Histories; Social Responses to Disability & Poverty in Economically Weaker Countries: Research, Trends, Critique, and Lessons Usually Not Learnt; and more.

Researchers may begin exploring the various bibliographies (by author M. Miles) at

http://cirrie.buffalo.edu/bibliography/index.php



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*_VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT_*

*_Position_** : CBR Officer ( Prosthesis & Orthotic) _Responsible to _: CBR Coordinator*

*_Location_** : Dadaab Refugee Camp (Garissa) _Family Status_ : Non Family duty Station*

*_Closing Date_** : Open *

*_THE ORGANIZATION_*

HI began its operations in 1992 as an emergency support programme in Garissa (North Eastern Province). Currently, HI is operating a medical referral project for refugees in this region in partnership with the UNHCR. HIV and AIDS activities are also being provided for the local community.

In 1994, HI launched another emergency support programme for internal displaced persons (IDPs) following inter-ethnic clashes, in Trans Nzoia District (Kitale town). Today, we are running in Kitale the most comprehensive HI Programme on HIV and AIDS in Kenya.

In 2002, in Nairobi we began disability activities with local partners (community-based organisations) focusing on support to networking, inclusive education and access to resources.

In April 2005, we have started a Mine Risk Education (MRE) project for the refugees living in the Kakuma Refugee Camp (near the Sudan border).

*_Rehabilitation project in Dadaab refugee camp:_*

Dadaab Refugee Camps, located in Garissa district, are the main settlement for Somali refugees, with a total population of 170,000 refugees, with a recent new influx^^[1] ^ due to the latest political events and severe drought in the southern parts of Somalia. To date some basic services have been developed to meet the refugees with disability needs. UNHCR, CARE International and other implementing partners working in Dadaab refugee camps raised a concern about the critical situation of the refugees with disability and scarce services provided to them. Therefore, UNHCR solicited Handicap International to support and contribute to develop initiatives towards disabled refugees in Dadaab camps.

An assessment carried out by HI from in February 2007 defined HI intervention with focus in two main areas:

(i) */To develop access to adequate rehabilitation services for persons with disability/*, with particular attention to be paid to technical aids and prosthetic production and rehabilitation and counselling services for children with intellectual disability and/or cerebral palsy; and

(ii) */To facilitate access to humanitarian aid and community development for persons with disability/*, through information sharing, counselling and sensitization of staff and agencies in charge of food distribution, sheltering, health, watsan and construction works, education, community development services and livelihood, etc.

The Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) Project Team will consist of 1 x Project Manager, 1 x CBR Coordinator , 1 x Mainstreaming Officer, 3 x CBR Officers (with technical expertise in differing but complimentary areas), 6 x rehabilitation workers, 6 x technical aids workers (leather work/shoe making and carpentry), and 30 x CBR workers.

* *

*THE POSITION*

Under the responsibility of CBR Coordinator, the CBR Officer (Prosthesis & Orthotic) will offer technical support to the CBR team in ensuring quality production and fitting of prosthetics, esthetics, & other orthopedic devices to persons with disability among refugees and host communities. She/he will also build capacity of the local technicians and rehabilitation staff and take lead in the referrals and follow ups of patients.

*S\he will be responsible for :-*

*1) Supervision and management of mobility aids workshops*

· Supervise operations in all mobility aids workshops present in all the three camps including Dadaab workshop.

· Closely monitor and arrange procurement of equipment and materials as required for workshop – production.

· Provide advice on installation of equipment in the workshops including workshop planning and utilization of workshop consumables

· Ensure P&O workshops’ set up are all up to standards and accepted specifications

· Ensure mobility aids workshops are barrier-free for the easy access to persons with disabilities.

· Ensure all safety measures are observed within the workshops to reduce hazards in the operation of various machinery and equipment.

· Develop proper workshop management systems to ensure effective and efficient P&O workshop management.

· Carry out regular monitoring of workshop activities, technicians’ performance and manufacture of devices.

*2) Capacity Building*

· Identify and provide on-the-job training to local technicians in Prosthetics and Orthotics.

· Develop training curriculum for on-the-job training of local technicians.

· Conduct regular evaluation of the on-job training.

· Provide basic orientation to community CBR workers on the maintenance and repair of devices in the field.

· Train P&O Assistants in Workshop Management and information systems.

*3) Supervision of P&O Assistants*

· Develop job descriptions for the P&O Assistants/Technicians.

· Together with the team, develop weekly work plan for the P&O Assistants/Technicians.

· Carry out induction and appraisal for the P&O Assistants/Technicians.

· Monitor P&O Assistants/Technicians performance and production.

* *

*4) Referrals and Physical rehabilitation*

· Ensure persons with disabilities receive good quality and appropriate prosthetic and orthotic devices and services from the workshops as well as in the field and from Garissa/Kangemi.

· Develop a good and effective patient’s follow up mechanism for patients who are fitted with P&O devices from Garissa general hospital and Kangemi.

· Maintain individual file for each person with disability receiving P&O devices and carry out regular follow up as per the requirement of the particular person.

· Maintain all records pertaining to service delivery.

· Ensure required gait training is provided to the clients after prosthetic and orthotic fitments.

· Ensure that the clients receive rehabilitation therapy as required, e.g. release of contracture and healing of stump edema before fitting devices.

*5) Coordination and networking *

· Maintain necessary coordination with Rehabilitation Therapists.

· Work closely with the Physiotherapist and Occupational therapist for patient treatment, follow-up and evaluation.

· Liaise with Technical Advisors for various technical matters and training programs as necessary.

· Represent the organization at forums, workshops and conferences in the areas of Prosthetics and Orthotics as may be required.

*6) Reporting*

· Produce updated reports at regular intervals as required by the project in terms of donor and organizational requirements.

*7) Others*

· Advice Management on various costs related to P&O materials, equipment, maintenance, training and service delivery.

· Capitalize on new areas of learning in P&O or any specific case histories for internal learning and for external dissemination when required.

*/ /*

*Qualifications and experience required:-*

· Diploma in Orthopaedics with 2 years of experience

· Knowledge of CBR implementation and management

· Ability to work in and lead a team

· Good report writing, presentation, communication and interpersonal skills

· Demonstrated ability to transfer knowledge through informal and formal trainings

· Computer literate with Knowledge of Word, Excel and Internet

· Experience with an International NGO is an added advantage

*Conditions*

Living conditions in Dadaab camp may be challenging (remote area, climate very hot), although facilities are offering minimum of comfort.

R&R leave of 7 days will be provided every 8 weeks of continuous accommodation within Dadaab.

If you feel you are the right candidate for this position, kindly send your application along with an up-to-date CV(including 3 referees) by email to the Human Resources Officer : hrofficer@handicap-international.or.ke

*NB: Applications will be processed as they are received and interviews conducted until the appropriate candidate is selected.*

*The email subject line should be marked: “Application for CBR Officer – Dadaab position”*

* *

*Please do not send your academic certificates and other testimonials they will be requested at a later stage.*

Only short listed candidates will be contacted.

*Handicap International is an Equal Opportunity Employer – Females and Persons with Disability are encouraged to apply ***



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Individuals interested in investigating the history of Deaf, deaf, or hard of hearing people in any African nation may wish to read the paper entitled, “Deaf People Living and Communicating in African Histories, c. 960s – 1960s” by M. Miles (2005).

The abstract for this paper is as follows:

“Glimpses of the lives and communication of deaf and hearing impaired people are seen in one thousand years of history across Africa. Textual evidence of 100 historical deaf adults and children, of hundreds more in groups, and of gestural communication and formal Sign Language, appears from 42 African nations, sourced in travellers’ accounts, legal and genealogical records, government reports, institutional and missionary archives, academic theses, linguistic studies, folklore, ethnography, novels, religious narrative, mime and dance. The data may assist in construction of valued identities and evidence-based cultural histories. Uses and interpretations remain for deaf people to discuss and choose according to their own varied interests and objectives.”

The article has 190 references, and notes some Africa-wide activities of deaf people, including in relation to deaf studies and sign language studies.

The author, M. Miles, has suggested that organizations of deaf people in each African nation should build their own archives and records of deaf people in order to help create an understanding of what it means to be deaf in Africa in the late 20th and early 21st century.

Read the full text of the article at:

http://www.independentliving.org/docs7/miles2005a.html



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MindFreedom Kenya is an affiliate of MindFreedom International, formed in response to identified gaps in mental health rights, lack of adequate information about substance abuse and impact to society and those directly affected. Since its inception, MindFreedom Kenya has endeavored to develop efforts to transform and diversify the marginalized and the most vulnerable-persons with psychosocial disabilities.

It helps users and survivors to be involved in care planning and making informed decisions about their care and upholding of human rights, advocating inhumane treatment and creating awareness about substance abuse and psychosocial disabilities.

For users and survivors of psychiatry, one of the most important things about the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) is that it says we have an equal right to legal capacity, which is the right to make our own decisions; and the right to free and informed consent in health care; and that we should not be deprived of liberty based on disability – which means that governments are violating this treaty if they lock us up in psychiatric institutions and do forced treatment. They also have positive obligations, to provide support and services needed to live in the community, and to provide access to support in exercising legal capacity if the person wants this support. Support in exercising legal capacity is the opposite of guardianship, because it means the person is in control of her/his own decisions and chooses the kind of help that she/he wants.

MindFreedom Kenya aim is to influence policy and planning, and to encourage improvements in the management and delivery of mental health services.

Ø Policy makers acknowledging the need and strongly pursuing mental health policies that positively impact their constituents and calling for revision of existing mental policies to match today’s complex and changing mental health care.
Ø Leaders in health profession, professional associations, mental health boards and health care companies to take a leading role in initiatives that increase access, quality and equity. On the same note, they must be able to establish a mental health advisory council independent from government that works collaboratively with policy makers. This mental health advisory council will create a mental health reform blueprints with support and input from both public and private health care sectors. The mental health advisory council along and/with sponsoring policy makers will ensure that such mental health policies are passed, implemented and delivered.
Ø Human Right organizations must recognize equity, access and quality of mental health care is a basic human right and they must take initiatives that will harness just distribution, fair and favorable policies and practically implementable mental health rights processes.
Ø Humanitarian Organizations involved in health care, WHO (World Health Org.) and UN (United Nations) to continue supporting mental health locally made policies and initiatives that are practical to the social realities of the people who need equal representation against abuses within the mental health system.

Regards,
Jeff Makana
kenya@mindfreedom.org
[Addendum, March 23, 2009: MindFreedom Kenya has a new website of its own at http://www.mindfreedomkenya.interconnection.org/

People also can learn about the organization at Jeff Makana's blog at www.erucall.com.



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This short-term consultancy position requires someone to provide a five-day training workshop in the use of QuickBooks from December 15 to 19, 2008. Profiles and proposals must be submitted by December 10, 2008.

TERMS OF REFERENCE: QUICKBOOKS TRAINING FOR THE SUB GRANTEES

BACKGROUND

HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL (HI) is an international NGO engaged in the field of disability and development. A strong emphasis, however, is placed on empowering people with disabilities through their integration into mainstream development activities and the provision of appropriate health and rehabilitation services to ensure equal opportunities for all.

Currently, HI is working with 6 partner organizations in the USAID/AED funded projects in the field of Disability and HIV & AIDS. The group represents a cross section of disabilities including the deaf, blind and low vision, physically and intellectually disabled.

The main thematic areas of the project activities include;
• Policy and advocacy
• Behavior change communication
• Appropriate IEC materials for the PWD
• Stigma reduction

One focus of the project is to provide technical support, build the capacities of the partner organization and provide funding to enable them implement HIV& AIDS activities.

JUSTIFICATION

Good financial management practice helps an organization to attain effective and efficient use of resources and be more accountable to donors and other stakeholders. Hence, HI would wish to commission training in QuickBooks for her partners as a requisite to ensuring quality and accurate financial record keeping and reporting on usage of donor funding. HI further wishes to install QuickBooks accounting packages for all the partner organizations that are not yet compliant to the package and final set up a cut-off period for compliance by all the organization.

BACKGROUND OF PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS

We have detailed as underneath a brief profile of each of the organizations that we are currently collaborating with as a basis of your understanding the scope of each partner. However, it may be worth noting that the proposed training may also include other partners we are yet to bring on board.

DDSHG (DANDORA DEAF SELF HELP GROUP)

Dandora is an organisation of deaf people that was formed over 10 years ago; Structural formation was very minimal in the initial years. Thus, Handicap international organized governance training which has since increased cohesiveness among the group membership. This is expressed through an increase of paid membership, while several board members who were also employees of the organization resigned as employees to pave for a clear segregation of interests. The organization is situated in Dandora area of Nairobi province.

On overall, the organization has sound and consistent financial management and reporting systems. In the period under review the organization was funded to a tune of Ksh. 1,996,453.00 (one million nine hundred ninety six thousand four hundred fifty three only)

BLINK (Blind and Low Vision Network)

Blink’s beneficiaries are primarily blind and/or persons with very low vision. A key issue for this organisation is that their beneficiaries are in different geographical locations. However, they have focal persons in each district that they meet weekly to discuss the needs of the communities. The board members are also representatives of different Community Based Organizations. They function as resource persons and may have their expenses reimbursed and allowances for services provided.

The organisation refers to itself as a Community Based Organization network that helps the individual Community Based Organisations provide support and care to their communities through awareness creation activities on HIV/AIDS. The discussions in the communities are generally broader than the HIV/AIDS, so the meetings are used as an opportunity to discuss other issues.

Blink has received training in project design and management including M&E frameworks, resource mobilisation, programme reporting, financial management, and managing special needs projects (e.g. reproductive health, HIV/AIDS counselling for disabled people, VCT testing). The counsellors are now better equipped to inform visually impaired people about their test results. Their reporting has also improved.

As regards the governance function, both board members and staff members now understand their roles and what is expected of them thanks to the capacity building initiatives by HI. The board members are also informed about the organisation’s activities by the Director on a regular basis.

The backbone of the spending in the organization is mainly logistical, thus the need for well tailored internal checks and balances mechanism that ensures prudence in the commitment of expenditure. In the current grant period the organisation was obligated to spend Ksh.2,728,962.00(two million seven hundred twenty eight thousand nine hundred sixty two only).

KEDAN (Kenya Disabled Action Network)

KEDAN is a youth organisation which is only 4 years old and covers several types of disability, contrary to most of the other disabled people’s organisations that target a particular category of disability (blind, deaf, physically impaired, and albinos – for capacity reasons they are currently unable to include mentally handicapped. The organisation started out with mobilisation, awareness creation and experience sharing and has only actively implemented programme activities since 2005. . They have developed an action plan for the next couple of years which they intend to implement, despite their limited resources, with the help of their motivated supporters.

As regards the needs of the organisation, KEDAN’s staff feels that they need to strengthen their competencies in the area of resource mobilisation, in particular proposal writing. They also need help to manage their existing resources better. Finally, they wish to develop their staff competencies in areas such as leadership and management, IT, and income generating activities.

In the current grant period the group is obligated to spend Ksh. 2,388,811.00 (two million three hundred eighty eight thousand eight hundred and eleven only).

NFSS (Nairobi Family Support Services)

NFSS was started in 1982 by Actionaid and registered as a local NGO in 1996. The Programme Coordinator has been the leader ever since. The organisation receives funding from HI France and from the AED-programme and is also supported by Sense International and the Liliane Foundation.

The mission of the organisation is to raise awareness on HIV-AIDS and disability through their work with community groups and attempt to change the stigma of disabled people in the community and their low-self esteem. The peer educators meet twice a month to exchange experiences.

NFSS has strong networking capacity. The organisation partners with different institutions, especially through referrals: the Liliane foundation (support for disabled people’s surgery), specialised schools (educational assessment), the Ministry of Health, government hospitals, networks of therapists. This gives the organisation high credibility in the communities.

NFSS would like to support “merry-go-rounds” (revolving credit systems), but as most of their beneficiaries are not working, it is difficult to collect the funds.

Until 2005, Action Aid funded a microfinance programme for the parents of disabled children. These loans were considered by some as grants. After having received several loans, and hence being allowed to loan greater sums, gradually, some of the beneficiaries disappeared with their funds. Only about 50% of these parents are able to continue repaying their microloans.

NFSS has an internal control manual but it has not enhanced its usage. There is therefore need to educate the staff on the importance of these procedures and its implementation. In the current grant period the organization is obligated to spend Ksh. 2,211,847.00 (two million two and eleven thousand eight hundred forty seven only).

DIGROT (Disabled Group of Trans Nzoia)

DIGROT was started in 1990 as a self help group of 50 members on the concept of a merry go round. Since 1998, the group has operated a bank account with Kenya Commercial Bank, Kitale Branch. The group started a micro finance lending system; Members were given loans of ksh.500 to Ksh 2,000 at an interest rate of 10% p.a.

In 2000, they received a grant from District Social Development Officer (Poverty Eradication Programme) which they used to loan their members. 14 members were successfully loaned through this programme and 7 defaulted to repay back. DIGROT was trained by HI in 2004 on micro-credit management.

In the year 2001-2003 they approached HI on HIV/AIDS awareness and in 2004 they wrote a proposal to HI on HIV and AIDS and Disability which was funded in May 2006.

DIGROT has representatives from different locations in Trans Nzoia district and was registered as a Community based Organization (CBO) in 2007. DIGROT is a network of DPOs (Disabled Persons Organizations) in Trans Nzoia district and usually conducts quarterly meetings with representatives from these DPOs.

It currently has 224 registered members and each member pays 524 shillings registration fee with a renewal fee of 200 shillings annually. Not all members are fully registered and the money is kept in a savings account.

The organization lacked well defined operational systems and procedures but has been subjected to vigorous capacity building initiatives, the organizations has also just finalized a recruitment exercise where competent and qualified staff have been brought on board.

In the current partnership agreement the organization is obligated to spend Ksh. 1,131,139.00 (one million one thirty one thousand one hundred thirty nine only)

UDPK (United Disabled Persons of Kenya)

United Disabled Persons of Kenya (UDPK) is an umbrella network of persons with disability in Kenya and was established in 1989 with a membership of the following organizations – Kenya Union of the Blind (KUB), Kenya National Association of the Deaf (KNAD) and Kenya Society of the Physically Handicapped (KSPH), Kenya Society for the Mentally Handicapped (KSMH). Kenya Autism Society joined later to champion issues of parents of mentally challenged Albinos and autism.

Currently UDPK has about 200 member organizations. UDPK was formed so that disabled persons could be united and speak with one voice, advocacy and lobbying remains the core objective.

Membership is both by organizations of and for disabled person. UDPK has five full time staff and 13 Field Officers working in different regions and is headquartered in Westlands, along Waiyaki Way. The mission of UDPK is to unite all persons, groups of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) to advocate for disability issues on a united front. The vision for the organization is a barrier free society where Persons with Disabilities (PWDS) enjoy access to services in all spheres of life.

In the current grant agreement the organization is mandated to spend Ksh.2, 542,345.00 (two million five forty two thousand three hundred forty five only).

GENERAL OBJECTIVE

The general objective of this consultancy is to conduct an application based QuickBooks Training for management and finance staff of Handicap International partners so as to reflect through proper recording keeping and accurate financial reporting an accountable and effective use of donor funds as outlined in the individual budgets of the funded organizations and based on properly defined internal control systems, proper administrative and logistical management.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE
• To design and develop a training programme that will equip the trainees with relevant skills and knowledge in Quickbooks

PROPOSED METHODOLOGY

HI proposes to hold a five day residential application based training for management and financial staff from each of the partnering organizations.

HI also proposes that the consulting firm shall at all times seek clarifications and/or guidelines from HI on all issues that are not clear and/or appear ambiguous in their opinion. For the purposes of this Training, the contact person for HI is Mr. Erick Karani, the Project Finance Officer.

TASKS OF THE CONSULTANT

1. Development of a training curriculum that shall conform to the afore-mentioned specific and general objectives and/or all other related aspects of QuickBooks financial package.

2. Carry out an evaluation of the training and produce a training report.

EXPECTED RESULTS

At the end of the training, the trainees will be able to:-
• Explain the essence and challenges of QuickBooks.
• Understand the usage and benefits of QuickBooks in financial management.
• Establish the relationship between QuickBooks reports and external reporting.
• Outline the QuickBooks main menu.
• Set up Accounts in the Quickbooks software
• Key in data and prepare accounting documents.
• Record General Journals.
• Prepare Bank Reconciliations.
• Develop Internal and Donor Reporting formats.
• Prepare monthly/annually reports.
• Correct Errors.

TIME FRAME

The training is expected to commence on 15th and end on 19th December, 2008 close of business.

QUALIFICATIONS

The consultant should have :-
• Relevant educational back ground and experience in teaching QuickBooks in a reputable institution.
• Relevant experience in working as a consultant/ lecturer is added advantage.
• Excellent analytical, writing and communication/facilitation skills.

APPLICATION PROCESS

All interested applicants must submit their profiles and proposals on or before 10th December, 2008 5.00 pm by email to the Project Finance Officer at: ekarani@handicap-international.or.ke

The email subject line should be marked: “QuickBooks training for the Sub grantees”



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