CCBRT, one of Tanzania’s largest disability organisations, and Radar Development, Tanzania’s only recruitment service dedicated to people with disabilities, are today launching a major survey to assess how many people with disabilities are employed in the workplace in the country. The survey was launched ahead of Labour Day on 1st May and will initially be carried out with members of the Tanzania Union of Industrial and Commercial Workers (TUICO). It is planned that the survey will be rolled out across government and Tanzania’s leading companies later in the year.
Jacqueline Kweka, Advocacy and Research Officer at CCBRT said, “We will be gathering important employment data from at least 200 organisations, some of which are ranked as top 50 companies doing business in Tanzania. In so doing, we will get a clearer picture of how many people with disabilities, many of whom are capable of contributing meaningfully to the economy, are actually employed and in which areas. We also hope it will encourage equal opportunities and fair treatment of people with disabilities in the labour market at the same time as raising awareness amongst employers about their legal obligations.”
Under existing Tanzanian law, in companies of 50 employees or more, 2 per cent of the workforce is required to be people with disabilities. In the Persons with Disabilities Bill, which was passed by parliament on 14th April 2010, this level increases to 3 per cent in firms with 20 or more registered employees. However, in reality, few employers are aware of the legal requirements in this area. The new Persons with Disabilities Bill will replace the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act of 1982 as well as the Disabled (Employment) Regulations 1985 – Government Notice No. 464 and, once enacted, the new Act will promote civil rights for disabled people, protect them from discrimination and give them rights in many areas including employment.
The United Nations estimates that in most countries, up to 80 per cent persons with disabilities of working age are unemployed. Jonathan Sutton, chief executive of Radar Group Limited said, ‘People with disabilities make up a large proportion of the population and employing someone with a disability does make business sense because they have a unique appreciation of their job, are very committed and are willing to work hard in order to succeed. And companies are starting to recognise this. Tigo, TBL and Tarmal Industries are among the firms which have recently recruited people with disabilities through Radar Development. We are delighted to be linking up with CCBRT to carry out this survey to get a more accurate picture of the situation.”
TUICO, which has over 56,000 members, has backed this project: “This is an important initiative and we are happy to give our full support to CCBRT and Radar Development in the data collection. We shall be encouraging our members, most of which are in industry, to take part in the survey,” commented Mr Elias Mwakihaba, organising secretary at TUICO.
The data collection is expected to take several months and the survey’s findings will be released in the second half of 2010.
For further information please contact:
Meg Muigai, PR Officer, CCBRT: Tel: 0732 999 583 / 260 1543, email: megmuigai@ccbrt.or.tz
Notes to Editors:
About CCBRT
Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation in Tanzania (CCBRT) is the largest indigenous provider of disability and rehabilitation services in Tanzania. Each year approximately 120,000 people directly access its services which include a disability hospital, community programme, an education programme and economic empowerment initiatives. CCBRT also runs extensive national and international training programmes and is actively advocating for the rights of people with disabilities to be recognized at national policy level. CCBRT’s main aim is to improve the quality of life for people living with disability and HIV/AIDS, their family members and caregivers to enable them to become full members of society. In a public-private partnership with the Government of Tanzania, CCBRT is also in the process of establishing a new maternity hospital for Dar es Salaam region. Construction is due to begin in 2010 next to the current disability hospital in Msasani. CCBRT is partly funded by the Government of Tanzania, CBM, EU, Irish Aid and Standard Chartered Bank and a number of other partners.
www.ccbrt.or.tz, www.baobabhospital.or.tz
About Radar Development
Radar Development is a not-for-profit division of Radar Group Limited and is situated at CCBRT in Msasani, Dar es Salaam. The organisation was set up in 2009 in collaboration with CCBRT to specifically find jobs for people living with disabilities and HIV/AIDS. Interviews are conducted on a walk-in basis on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday mornings.
