Speaking at the launch of the Sešego Cares Aid Centre in Johannesburg this morning, Noluthando Mayende-Sibiya, Minister of Women, Children and Persons with Disability, expressed her concern at the high cost of assistive devices for persons with disability.
"I am aware of the high cost of assistive devices and mobility aids and remain concerned that these devices, that can help those who live with disabilities live normal lives, are so expensive and to some even unaffordable," Minister Mayende-Sibiya said.
According to a study done by Statistics South Africa in 2005, "disabled persons were generally older, had a higher percentage of persons with no education and a lower percentage of employed persons than those who were not disabled.
"Furthermore, disabled women experienced the disadvantage of being disabled as well as being female, which results in their lower rates of employment".
"In some instances, an ordinary wheelchair can cost up to R2 000 and a motorised wheelchair can cost more than R50 000. Similarly, hearing aids can reach R10 000 and prosthetic limps even more.
"We need to work together and look at ways of bringing down the cost of these unaffordable assistive devices so that we can avoid a situation where only those who can afford it, will be enabled while those who are poor and unemployed, continue to depend on handouts or are doomed to a life with limited opportunities," she added.
Minister Mayende-Sibiya challenged other corporate companies to follow the example of the Amalgamated Banks of South Africa (ABSA), who initiated the Sešego Care Aid Centre, a centre that will provide assistive aids and devices to people with disabilities, and to join hands with government to help more persons with disabilities reaching their full potential.
"I would like urge other corporate companies to follow (ABSA's) example and to also look within their own means how they, in a meaningful way, can contribute directly to the improvement of lives and the creation of the better country we all dream of," the Minister concluded.
