UNICEF yesterday handed over 98 copies of the Sexual Offences Act in braille to the National Commission on Disability (NCD).
A release from UNICEF said that the presentation is part of a continuing initiative to ensure that all children, including those with disabilities, have access to crucial laws.
Acting UNICEF Representative to Guyana and Suriname, Irfan Akhtar, made the presentation to Executive Secretary of the NCD, Beverly Pile, at a ceremony at the NCD’s office on Croal Street, Georgetown.
“We in UNICEF are convinced that a country’s human resources can only be advanced if there is equity, inclusion, respect and active participation of all persons. We are pleased to have had the opportunity to make possible the translation of the Sexual Offences Act in braille,” said Akhtar.
“This gesture is one significant way of supporting the NCD’s goal to promote a society where persons with disabilities know their rights and are able to lead full and productive lives”, he added.
The release said that UNICEF had previously supported the translation of key legislation including the Sexual Offences Act (2010), the Protection of Children Act (2009) and the Trafficking in Persons Act (2005) into user-friendly language, which were then reproduced in braille.
Braille is a system of touch reading for blind persons in which raised dots represent the letters of the alphabet.
