On the occasion of the 34th edition of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, celebrated on December 3, 2025, the project “Building resilience for enhanced access to basic services of Health, Education, and Social inclusion in the Far North region” commemorated this date with a special campaign to identify people with disabilities who should benefit from disability cards. The activity aims at strengthening access to social rights and protection mechanisms for people with disabilities.
According to Alain PASSAH, Coordinator of the Building Resilience Project, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, BMZ, and the Christian Blind Mission, CBM, this initiative goes far beyond the symbolism of the day. “We wanted to turn this celebration into a concrete action. The identification of people with disabilities is an essential step to allow them to benefit from disability cards and, consequently, from their social and administrative rights,” he explained.
Organized in collaboration with the Waza Social Center and the local authorities, the identification process reached more than 100 people with various types of disabilities, sometimes marginalized or poorly informed about administrative procedures.
For the Divisional Officer of Waza, Jean Jaurès Medjo, this campaign represents real progress for social inclusion: “Too often, people with disabilities do not know where to turn to assert their rights. This initiative facilitates their identification and support, while bringing the administration closer to the populations,” he stressed.
On the side of the beneficiaries, the satisfaction was also perceptible. Mr. Dangbe Robert, President of the Organization of People with Disabilities of Waza was pleased with the action taken: “I have been hearing about the disability card for years without knowing how to apply for it. Today, thanks to this campaign, I have been identified and I am convinced that I will finally have my disability card. It’s a great relief,” he said.
Through this celebration of the 34th edition of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, the Building Resilience Project reaffirms its commitment to promoting inclusion, equity and community resilience, while advocating for the effective consideration of persons with disabilities in local and national public policies.
This celebration also served as a framework for an important awareness-raising action on clubfoot, a congenital malformation still surrounded by many misconceptions. Key messages focused on the fact that clubfoot is neither a curse nor a fatality, but a condition that can be corrected with early and appropriate treatment.
