Orientation Program on Economic and Existing Provisions for Women with Disabilities_Nepalgunj

Access Planet Organization, in partnership with the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law, and Development (APWLD) conducted an orientation program titled "Orientation Program on Economic and Existing Provisions for Women with Disabilities" at Hotel Marutinandan, Nepalgunj. The program aimed to empower 15 women with disabilities in Banke district by enhancing their understanding of economic rights and relevant legal provisions. Laxmi Nepal, Director of Access Planet, and Jenisha Maharjan, Program Coordinator, led the orientation, with facilitation from experts President of the Nepalgunj Gharelu Mahasang, Dila Shah, representive of Employment Service and Training Center, Bijaya Chaudhary and trainer of the Bheri Technical School Asha Kumari Shrestha.

Objectives:

The main objectives of the Orientation are as follows:

• Empower participants with knowledge about economic rights for women with disabilities
• To explore local economic opportunities available to women with disabilities.
• To identify challenges and issues faced by women with disabilities in accessing their economic rights.
• To equip participants with advocacy skills and strategies to effectively advocate for the economic rights of women with disabilities.
• To develop actionable advocacy plans for promoting economic rights for women with disabilities at the local level.

The sessions included in this orientations are as follows:

• Linkage between Women's Rights and Economic Rights
• Act Relating to Rights of Persons with Disabilities (ARPD) 2017 and relevant sections pertaining to economic rights and employment opportunities.
• Economic Opportunities at the Local Level
• Economic Rights of Women with Disabilities: Identifying issues on economic rights of women with disabilities
• Building Advocacy Skills and Strategies
• Advocacy Action Plan

Overall, the 2-day orientation program gave participants valuable insights into their economic rights as women with disabilities and equipped them with the skills and strategies needed to advocate for meaningful change in their communities.

Outputs:

• Participants gained a deeper understanding of the linkage between women's rights and economic empowerment and enhanced knowledge of the relevant provisions of (ARPD) 2017.
• A wide range of comprehensive reviews and discussions on the economic challenges faced by women with disabilities in the local context was carried out.
• Participants developed essential advocacy skills, including effective communication and negotiation techniques, and formulated advocacy action plans.