By Nicholas Aribino
Every year Zimbabwe joins other countries to celebrate the International Day of People with disabilities (PWDs) on 3 December. This year’s celebration of the International Day of People with disabilities was low key. Most people with disabilities felt that the day came and went with quiet whispers that spoke voluminously about the government’ s ambivalent attitude towards people with disabilities as nothing much was said on radio and TV to mark the importance of the day. PWDs expected the day to be pregnant with gatherings and speeches on disability and development across the breadth and width of the country. The Aids Day (1 December) that had just come before the International Day of PWDs with disabilities was awash with activities and speeches that filled in Zimbabweans on the situation regarding the evolving and fluid nature of HIV and AIDs and the expenditure of effort that has so far been injected into fighting the scourge at international, regional and national levels. On December 3, 2024, PWDs in Zimbabwe were as lonely and empty as a church on a Monday afternoon, they felt trivialised and marginalised globally, regionally and nationally because their day appeared vacuous and hollow without any solidarity messages from both state and non-state actors. It is the intent of this opinion piece to think as if there is no box and suggest that the Disability Expo that is annually held in Zimbabwe should be aligned to December 3.
The Disability Expo which is a great initiative from the Office of the President and Cabinet that deals with advisement on disability issues brings together persons and organisations of PWDs every year to raise awareness about disability. The Disability Expo attracts several different organisations of persons with disabilities where they also showcase their abilities in different areas of gifting. The President of Zimbabwe, senior government officials, International Non -governmental Organisations (INGOs) and Intergovernmental Organisations (IGOs), among others have in the past attended the Disability Expos. For example, when the President of Zimbabwe attended this year’s Disability Expo in Bindura he distributed computers, butter making machines and agricultural inputs to PWDs. It would be awesome to dole out all these resources on December 3 as a way of marking the International Day for PWDS. During the Disability Expo the Disability Senators, the department of Disability Affairs and the President of Zimbabwe give speeches that chronicle government policies on disability and development, gender and disability and the vision of the country in leaving no one and no place behind. All these activities of the Disability Expo put together would be ideal to be projected on the International Day of PWDs which is 3 December of every year.
PWDs have experience multiple challenges that are a result of both internal and external barriers to active living and participation. The challenges that PWDs face daily cannot be overcome unless different facets of society challenge border protection and silo thinking. Disability is a natural meeting ground for different disciplines and to that effect, the Disability Expo in Zimbabwe brings together different organisations that meet to share evaluated experiences and the joys and sorrows of PWDs. The Disability Expo presents an opportune time to be associated with 3 December. Having the Disability Expo being held on 3 December would also be cost effective because from experience this writer has noticed that the Disability Expo enjoys technical, financial and logistical support from both the private and public sectors. Power lies in the collective, when the private and public sectors combine efforts to celebrate the Disability Expo individual and situational analysis of opportunities and challenges associated with PWDs can be shared with the view of coming up with stimulus packages for PWDs. It is fatuous to always project PWDs as consumers or recipients of goods and services and not as contributors to the production of those goods and services. Not all people with disabilities need charity. There are some people with disabilities who would just need education and training to help them ride out of poverty. Education and training promote interdependence, independence and productivity. If the Disability Expo falls on 3 December, it will solidify the position of Zimbabwe as having championed the disability cause by being the first African country to have crafted the Disabled Persons Act in 1992, rather than having the day pass by without any activities of note. Arguably, how a country cares for its citizens is demonstrated by the stimulus policies that the country has for its multiply minoritised populations. However, stimulus policies without any votes to augment the implementation matrix of such stimulus policies would be like a pig’s tail that covers nothing. Zimbabwe has done unspeakably well in coming up with policies, laws, programmes and projects that support disability, but all these efforts seem to lose their steam when it comes to funding. The Disability Expo is an excellent initiative that needs fiscal support. Going forward the Disability Expo should be married to December 3 for the purpose of leadership teaming and fixity of purpose between and among organisations of parsons with disabilities (OPDs), state and non-state actors.
