Group Launches Research Report on Barriers to Healthcare Access for Deaf Women, Girls

Paschal Emeka, Abuja

The Country Director, of CBM Global Disability Inclusion, Ms. Ekaete Umoh has observed with concern that despite Nigeria’s ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), the Sendai Framework and their extant legal protocols which recognizes full and equal access and participation in societies and communities for persons with disabilities as a fundamental right, including in times of crisis, deaf women and girls are still largely discriminated in terms of access to information before and during emergencies.

She made the observation on Monday in Abuja, while delivering an open remark at the launch of the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD) research report on the barriers to healthcare access for deaf Nigerian women and girls.

According to her, Research Report on Barriers to Healthcare Access for Deaf Nigerian Women and Girls in Emergency x-rayed the systemic gaps and barriers faced by deaf women and girls in accessing quality and professional sign language interpreters for healthcare provisioning in emergency-related communication.

“The World Federation of the Deaf (WFD) seeks to address the intersection of being deaf and being a woman when facing emergency and disaster situations and requesting healthcare services.

“This report presents preliminary research on the experiences faced in health care by deaf women and girls in Nigeria, highlighting the most recent emergency and disaster situation, the Covid-19 pandemic.

“This report is both germane and strategic for us at CBM Global as the world leader in global disability inclusion that works alongside people with disabilities in the world’s poorest places to fight poverty and exclusion and transform lives.

“Our work focuses on the significant number of people with disability globally, with a mission to end the circle of Poverty and disability, we are dual mandate working the Development and Humanitarian Action.

“As we discuss the research findings and recommendations, I want to implore us to keep an open mind as we jointly set the agenda to address the gaps deaf women and girls with disabilities face in accessing health care provision.

“I call on all critical stakeholders to join in the implementation of the research recommendation,” she concluded.