This archive report was first published on 23 April 2020.
As we yearn to go back to our normal life, persons with disabilities have no normal to go back to. Their isolation has been their normal, and it's time for us to learn from this and devise ways to include them in the workforce.
According to the 2019 census, 918,213 people live with disabilities in Kenya, with a majority of them (385,417) having a lack of mobility. The employability of persons with disabilities has remained far lower compared to the rest of the population, with some employees viewing accommodating them at the workplace as expensive.
However, the pandemic has proved that denying people job opportunities while hinting at doubts about working from home is a lame excuse. With the government organizing online learning, why not devise the same for persons with disabilities even after the pandemic?
As we learn to manage isolation anxiety and distress, we can also learn from persons with disabilities who have been in isolation for longer. It's time to equip them with digital communication skills to connect to the world like the rest, even if it's from their homes.
Let us learn how to treat others better and how to be more tolerant from the pandemic. It's time to come out of the pandemic as more understanding of the situation of persons with disabilities.
