The Chief of Office Staff to Labor Minister, Stanly Barh, says decent work offers prospects for personal growth and development, as well as encourages social integrations, free speech, freedom of association, and collective bargaining in the workplace.
Mr. Barh noted that Minister Cooper Kruah, the government and international partners are committed to ensure that decent work conditions exist at every place of work in Liberia.
According to the release, Mr. Barh proxy at the start of a two-day “First National Conference on Decent Work for Persons with Disabilities” taking place at the Ministry of Labor in Monrovia.
Mr. Barh hailed organizers of the first conference on Decent Work for Persons with Disabilities which include AIFO, CAD-L and thanked special partners, especially the UNDP, EU, SIDA, US Embassy for their support.
He said though Liberia may not be handicap friendly, but the country is getting to a point where every work place will create conditions for persons with disabilities.
Earlier, Chief of Party –ALFO/CAD-L Lwaca Todescato said she was proud of what has been achieved at the level of her institution’s intervention in Liberia thus far.
She added that AIFO/CAD-L is a coordinated project for people affected by disabilities in Liberia intended to change the system for their inclusion in the employment databank.
Madam Todescato added that the second goal of the project targets social dialogue, aimed to create a collective agreement for decent work for persons with disabilities as means of including them in the development process of the country.
The AlFO/CAD-L Chief of Party disclosed that the Conference is the first of its kind in Liberia and is the beginning of a very long journey, expressing that it will continue.
She emphasized that the conference is as a result six sectorial consultations with various groups in five counties in different sectors, including human rights, agriculture, education and social dialogue, with the goal to understand the challenges of persons with disabilities in accessing employment and work environment.
The Executive Director of the National Commission on Disabilities (NCD), Samuel Dean, said that decent work is not a serious a matter because people with disabilities need safety net in the fight against marginalization in society.
Mr. Dean used the opportunity to call on the government and partners to be serious about employment of persons with disabilities and is proposing conversations with major stakeholders on their inclusion of persons with disabilities for employment.
He said his commission has done a desegregated data which will classify persons with disabilities by stratification, gender, and age for work noting: “If Ministry of Labor were to say send us two computer operators for example, to help us craft out plans for persons with disabilities that are accessible by world class standards, we will be able, because there is no data.”
The conference brings together representatives from the National Union of Disabilities (NUOD), National Commission on Disabilities (NCD), the Liberia Labor Congress (LLC) and Liberia Chamber of Commerce (LCC), as well as Alliance on Disability.
Other organizations taking part in the two day conference include: The National Legislature, UNDP, European Union, SIDA, Line Ministries of Government, amongst others.
