DOWN SYNDROME ASSOCIATION OF BOTSWANA CARE GIVERS WORKSHOP
On the 15th November 2022 Down Syndrome Association of Botswana hosted a 1-day Care-Givers workshop in Gaborone at the President Hotel. This workshop was made possible through Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI) grant to the Botswana Council for the Disabled to erect a Disability Resource Centre which DSAB is a beneficiary of. The resource centre project will end in February 2023 snd the goal of thes project is to; Empower women lead Disability Organizations to provide quality services for people with disabilities through the creation of a Resource Centre which will serve as an Information base and Capacity Building for Independent living and Sustainable livelihoods.
The purpose workshop which was co-facilitated by Ms. Ngwako (DSAB Chairperson) and Ms Strydom (DSAB Facilitator), was to afford caregivers, mothers and guardians of children and adults with Down Syndrome an in-depth understanding of the condition and its causes. Care Givers were also given the opportunity to share their experiences as well ask questions regarding the caring and raising of children with Down Syndrome.
BCD Executive Director Mr. Louis attended the workshop together with BDC Project Officer, Mrs L. Moseki and the Marketing Assistant, Mr L. Magetse. Mr M. Louis delivered an informative presentation on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), allowing the present Care givers to learn about the rights of Persons with Disabilities, different paths and mechanisms in which they can utilize the CRPD to strive for the attention and non-passive assistance of the Government in advocating for the rights of Persons with Disabilities. He notified the Care Givers of the ratification of the UNCRPD by the Government of Botswana last year August 11th 2021 and what that means for them.