The Specialised Training and Disability Resource Centre of the Employers’ Federation of Ceylon (EFC) has been shortlisted for ‘Zero Project 2021’- an initiative of the Essl Foundation which focuses on the rights of people with disabilities globally.
The Zero Project of the Essl Foundation provides a platform where the most innovative and effective solutions to problems that people with disabilities face are shared. It is committed to assist in creating a world without barriers, based on the Articles of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Each year the Zero Project focuses its research on a particular theme from the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (UN CRPD.) The themes revolve around employment, accessibility, independent living, political participation and education.The EFC’s Specialised Training and Disability Resource Centre was among the 178 nominations which made it through to the shortlist.
“The nominated practices and policies have made it through a detailed quality check and through one round of peer-reviewing from experts, with and without disabilities, from around the world,” according to the project details.
The Resource Centre which is now into its 11thyear, is a benchmarked platform for its “innovation’’ and “uniqueness”, said its Manager Manique Gunaratne.
“The opportunities afforded by the Centre are multiple including employment opportunities for people with disabilities, additional training opportunities and app users.
These services are geared towards the open labour market in the country and extend to persons with diverse disabilities, diverse age groups, covering all corners of Sri Lanka,” said Gunaratne.The Resource Centre rests on the concept of “nothing about us without us,” said Gunaratne who herself is visually impaired, having lost her vision in her late twenties due to Retinitis Pigmentosa.
Calling for a national will to champion the rights of people with disabilities, Gunaratne urged for expeditious passage of the Disability Rights Bill. “The Covid-19 pandemic has taken a toll on everyone and it is imperative to identify the concerns of people with disabilities and empower them especially during a testing time such as this.”She also invited more companies and stakeholders to team up with the EFC to provide more employment opportunities for people with disabilities and promote inclusive workplaces.
The Essl Foundation is an Austrian foundation set up in 2007 by Martin and Gerda Essl and their children, focuses on social innovation, social entrepreneurship and persons with disabilities.
The Foundation is also in special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations since 2014 (ECOSOC status) and a member of the European Foundation Centre.