When the COVID-19 pandemic struck and social distancing became a life-saving necessity, one vulnerable population that had a tough time complying with that protocol were persons with visual impairment.
In the absence of flexible mobility tools such as white canes that would reduce their dependence on other people to be able to navigate their environment, visually impaired persons had no option than to rely on friends and relatives to move around.
In an event where the person assisting the blind person contracted the virus, passing it on to the visually impaired is non-negotiable.
According to the Ghana Blind Union, out of an estimated 230,000 visually impaired people in the country, only about 30 per cent of them had access to white canes.
White cane is a tool that allows people who are blind or partially sighted to navigate the world around them safely and independently.
In an interaction with some visually impaired people, it emerged that some of them had never used white canes before and always depended on families and loved ones to go about their duties.
Some also indicated that they had used the tool before, but they could not afford a new one when it got spoilt.
A white cane cost an average GH¢100. However, with many visually impaired people unemployed and having to rely on the benevolence of others to survive, purchasing white canes periodically to facilitate their movement is a hurdle.
Mr Daniel Leno, a visually impaired teacher, earns GH¢200 a month. He said for five years now he has not been able to replace his white cane because he cannot afford it.
“An organisation gave me one, but it got spoilt along the line and since then I have not been able to replace it. Now, I restrict myself to my house and work and I do not go to places I do not know because the environment might not be safe,” he said.
Sixteen years after the passage of the Disability Act 2006 (Act 715), which was intended to ensure total inclusion of persons with disability and curb inequalities, that population continue to face discrimination.
In an interview, Dr Peter Obeng-Asamoah, Executive Director, Ghana Blind Union under the Journalists for Human Rrights Project titled, “Mobilising the Media in Fighting COVID-19,” said the COVID-19 pandemic had underscored the need to provide visually impaired people with essential mobility tools to reduce their dependency on people and promote social inclusion.
He said thousands of visually impaired people especially those in the rural areas could not afford white canes and in the absence of a social intervention policy to bridge the gap, those people are suffering from social exclusion.
Dr Obeng-Asamoah said last year, the Union through public support, was able to supply about 400 white canes to its members, which, he added, was inadequate given the number of visually impaired people without the tool.
He said accessibility was also a challenge, indicating that there was only one distributor of white canes in the country.
Dr Obeng-Asamoah appealed to the Government to introduce a policy that would ensure that every visually impaired person at the district level had access to a white cane, adding that training on how to use the tool should also be prioritised.
“The White cane is a mobility tool so if you do not have it, it restricts your mobility and makes you dependent. We had a lot of problems with COVID-19 because we were not supposed to be touching people.
“White cane is not a matter of luxury. I think it is a basic human right that every blind person in Ghana should have access to ensure freedom of movement,” he said.
Ghana ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2012 and by so doing it is incumbent on the country to adopt policies and implement programmes geared towards protecting and promoting the rights of PWDs including those with visual impairments.
A 2018 United Nations Report titled: “Development and Disability: Realising the Sustainable Development Goals by, for and with persons with disabilities” found that despite the progress made in recent years, persons with disabilities continue to face numerous barriers to their full inclusion and participation in the life of their communities.
The visually impaired have a lot of qualities and the potential to contribute to the development of the nation in diverse ways. One of the ways to ensure their meaningful participation and inclusion in the national development drive is to increase their mobility independence.
In Rwanda, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) together with stakeholders have locally developed ‘smart’ white canes for the visually impaired to enable them to expand their social and economic activities.
The high-tech white cane uses ultrasonic ranging technology to detect obstacles in a distance of 1.2 meters and alert the user through vibrations and sound. It also has sensors, which can help the user to differentiate day and night.
Such fruitful partnerships between development institutions, private sector, and local actors could be replicated in Ghana to develop affordable and efficient tools that would enhance the right to movement of the visually impaired.