Kitgum Diocese, in partnership with Father’s Heart Mobility Ministry, is distributing 295 wheelchairs to persons with disabilities in Kitgum District, targeting beneficiaries in Chua East, Chua West and Kitgum Municipality.The distribution is intended to improve mobility and access to essential services, including education, for people with physical disabilities.
The Bishop of Kitgum Diocese, the Rev. Wilson Kitara, said the programme would initially cover Kitgum District before extending to other districts served by the diocese, depending on the needs of registered beneficiaries and the availability of wheelchairs.
“We have started with Kitgum, and today we are distributing each chair, starting with Chua East; then we are coming to Chua West and on Friday will be in Municipality,” Kitara said.
He said the diocese hoped to ensure that every person who needs a wheelchair in its area of jurisdiction could eventually receive one.“Our target is that all the disabled people who want a wheelchair should receive a wheelchair in all these districts in the diocese,” he said.
Caesar Omony, the diocesan treasurer, said preparations began in July, when the diocese registered prospective beneficiaries following consultations with Francis Mugwanya, the executive director of Father’s Heart Mobility Ministry.
“We thank God for the 295 gifts of wheelchairs that we have for Kitgum District,” Omony said.
He said the programme would be extended to Pader, Agago and Lamwo districts as resources become available.
Kitara said Lamwo had received wheelchairs the previous year, while Agago and Pader were expected to be considered in a future phase.
Mugwanya said the organisation had distributed more than 25,000 wheelchairs across Uganda and was revisiting areas previously covered to identify people whose wheelchairs had become old or needed repairs.
“We are starting with the districts that we came to a long time ago, where we know the wheelchairs are now old, or they need repair,” Mugwanya said.
He thanked Kitgum Diocese for helping identify beneficiaries and urged parents to ensure that children with disabilities attend school and are protected from discrimination and harmful cultural beliefs.
“Those children are a gift from God,” he said, urging parents not to abandon children because of their disabilities or assume they cannot contribute to society.
The initiative comes amid concerns about the scale of disability-related needs in Kitgum District.
Matthew Omoya, the chairperson of the Kitgum District Disability Council, said district figures indicate that 36,759 people with disabilities live in the district, out of a total population of 226,087.
The figures include 13,756 adult women, 5,827 girls, 11,635 adult men and 5,551 boys with disabilities.
Omoya said the district’s population of persons with disabilities includes people with physical, visual and hearing impairments, as well as epilepsy and other conditions.
He said the figures underscored the need for sustained support and appealed to parents whose children had dropped out of school or remained out of school because of mobility challenges to enroll them next term.
Kitara called on government, civil society organisations, religious institutions and community leaders to work together to improve the welfare of persons with disabilities, particularly those affected by poverty and neglect. “It is a core value of the diocese to see that people who are neglected, people who are poor,” he said. “You can do something; I can do something. God has given us a gift,” he added-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
