Speech by the Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Labour and Social Protection During the Launch of the NCPWD Strategic Plan Held at KICD, Nairobi on 27th June 2019.
Ministry of Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary, Amb. Ukur Yatani during the launch of the Strategic Plan for the National Council for Persons with Disability (NCPWD) at KICD on Thursday 27th June, 2019.
The Principal Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Social Protection
The Chairman, National Council for Persons with Disabilities
Members of the Board, National Council for Persons with Disabilities
Board of Trustees, National Development Fund for Persons with Disabilities
The Executive Director, National Council for Persons with Disabilities
Invited Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is my great pleasure to join you today at this auspicious occasion for the launch of the National Council for Persons with Disabilities StrategicPlan for the period 2018-2022. May I express my profound gratitude for your invitation to me to be the Guest of Honour during this important occasion when the Council is launching its Strategy Plan for the next five years.
I congratulate the Council for coming up with an elaborate strategic plan that will move the disability sector to high levels of prosperity.
I have perused through the plan and Iam satisfied that the strategy was well thought through and clearlyoutlines the strategies the Council will use in realizing its mandate in the next five years. Iam greatly impressed by the quality of the ideas put in the strategic plan. They were well thought through.
Ladies and Gentlemen
I am also aware that the development of this strategic plan went through the process of involving other stakeholders including persons with disabilities who are the key stakeholders. This is in line with the provision of the Constitution of Kenya of public participation in policy formulation and in decision making.
Stakeholders during NCPWD launch at KICD.
I also note with gratitude that the Strategic Plan is aligned to key policy instruments such as the Vision 2030 and the Third Medium Term Plan (MTP III), the “Big Four Agenda”, Africa’s Agenda 2063 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s). This indeed is a clear demonstration that the Council is responsive to the dynamic changing needs of the society.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
This Strategic Plan provides a roadmap for the Council to promote and protect equalization of opportunities and realization of human rights for persons with disabilities to live decent livelihoods. It is my hope that the Council will be able to seize any available opportunity to realize its vision of creating a barrier free society for persons with disabilities.
I am therefore pleased that in launching the Strategic Plan 2018-2022, the Council has put in place measures geared towards adapting it to the context in which it operates. The contents of the Strategic Plan are themselves promising. During the five years the Council will focus on the following policy priorities, that is,
- Data and statistics,
- Empowerment of persons with disabilities and
- Disability mainstreaming.
- Institutional Capacity
Labour and Social Protection CS, Amb. Ukur Yatani, Labour and Social Protection CAS, Hon. Abdul Bahari, Social Protection PS, Nelson Marwa and Parliament representative for persons with disabilities, Hon. David Ole Sankok.
In implementing the Strategic Plan,I want to assure members of the Board, staff and the disability fraternity at large my Ministry’s commitment to support the Council in delivering on its mandate. More importantly, myMinistry will fast track the finalization of the enactment of the Persons with Disabilities Amendment Bill 2019 which has proposed some far reaching measures to ensure inclusion of persons with disabilities. My Ministry will ensure that the new law is passed before the second quarter of the Financial Year 2019-2020.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
As part of strengthening the Council, I gazetted a new Board of Trustees inMay this year. The Board of Trustees will be responsible for administering the National Development Fund for Persons with Disabilities. It is my belief that the BOT will work with the Board of Directors together with the Executive Director to ensure that persons with disabilities access the funds through the various programmes offered by the Council.
FurtherIt is also my hope that the Fund will be administered prudently so as to respond to the expressed needs of persons with disabilities in all counties without any discrimination .In this regard, I urge the Council togive special considerations to those persons with disabilitieswho are poor and vulnerable and those in the marginalized areas.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
As noted above, the Strategic Plan being launched today is based on four key pillars. Each pillar has clearly spelt out strategies whose full implementation will facilitate the transformation of lives of persons with disabilities.
In conclusion, I note with satisfaction that the Strategic Plan provides for an effective monitoring and evaluation system which will guide in gauging the performance of the Council and the impact of the implementation of the Plan.
Lastly, I wish to thank the Board of Directors and Management of the National Council for Persons with Disabilities, the Kenya School of Government who facilitated the development of the Strategy Plan and all the other stakeholders who took part in the process of developing the Plan in one way or another.
In line with the spirit of leaving no one behind, I wish to request the management of the Council to continue engaging with these stakeholders as you implement the Plan. I also wish the Council best of luck during the implementation the StrategicPlan.
With these few remarks, ladies and Gentlemen, it is now my pleasure to declare theNational Council for Persons with Disabilities Strategic Plan 2018- 2022,officially launched.
Thank You!
Labour and Social Protection CS, Amb. Ukur Yatani launches the National Council for Persons With Disabilities strategic plan 2018-2022 at KICD in Nairobi. In attendance was Labour and Social Protection CAS, Hon. Abdul Bahari, Social Protection PS, Nelson Marwa and Parliament representative for persons with disabilities, Hon. David Ole Sankok.