Cacuaco – At least 150 professional from the ministries of Health (MINSA) and Interior (MININT) are since Monday in Luanda Province benefiting from a training program on Angolan Sign Language (LGA), in an initiative of the Ministry of Social Action, Promotion of Family and Women (MASFAMU).
The training under the motto “Strengthen Knowledge in Sign Language, for Inclusive Service”, will last six weeks and is taking place at the Social Service Technicians Training School (ENFOTESS), in the Cacuaco neighbourhood.
During the training, participants will learn in an intensive method about “Communicative Skills and Practices”.
Speaking at the opening of the ceremony, the minister of Social Action, Family and Promotion of Women, Ana Paula do Sacramento Neto, emphasized social inclusion as a “fundamental right and imperative need for the construction of a supportive society”.
She stressed that the project is more than a teaching of a new language because it will promote a new approach to communication and interaction.
“This training reflects a broad vision that provides security, health, education and social well-being”, she stated.
The minister highlighted the fact that it is a joint action involving the Ministry of the Interior, Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Social Action, Promotion of Family and Women.
Ana Paula do Sacramento Neto reported that with the training of professionals, conditions are being created so that public services become more accessible and sensitive to the needs of all sections of the population, including people with hearing and speech impairments.
“We are all called to promote inclusion, create an environment where diversity is valued and where we can all have the chance to contribute with our skills and techniques”, said the minister, highlighting that all people, regardless of their abilities, must have access to the same opportunities for active social and cultural participation.
To her, social inclusion promotes cohesion, strengthens community ties, ensuring that no citizen is left behind and with training in Angolan sign language a significant step is taken.
The government official also mentioned that the actions carried out are not isolated, they are part of the government plan, which has as a priority the promotion of a fairer, more inclusive and supportive society.
She noted that this is a commitment that reflects the State's vision of integrating public policies that guarantee equal opportunities and the protection of citizens' rights.
The ceremony was attended by the minister of the Interior, Manuel Homem, the secretary of State for Public Health, Carlos de Sousa, as well as the national director for Pre-School and Primary Education, Soraya Kalongela, on behalf of the minister of Education, Luisa Grilo.
Lack of gestural communication makes service difficult
The chairman of the Angolan Federation of Associations of People with Disabilities (FAPED), Esmeraldina Miguel, highlighted that the lack of communication in sign language in public services makes it difficult to serve users with special needs.
Speaking to ANGOP after the opening act of the “Training on Angolan Sign Language (LGA), she explained that as a result of the lack of gestural communication in these institutions, its organization registered, since January until the present data, more than a thousand occurrences in police stations and hospitals.
To her, these incidents are what causes the most concern for pregnant women who encounter countless difficulties in hospitals during their prenatal consultations, from the medical prescription stage to the day of birth, putting the baby's life at risk and of the mother, having even recorded cases of death of newborns due to lack of this gestural communication.
Esmeraldina Miguel explained that the same happens in police stations where a person with a hearing or speech impairment cannot communicate or be perceived, thus making the process difficult.
Regarding the MASFAMU initiative, she only guarantees training that will allow greater inclusion of people with disabilities and facilitate sign language in public services.
The Angolan Federation of Associations of People with Disabilities (FAPED) controls 21 associations in all countries.
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