Local Government Minister orders District Assemblies to recruit sign interpreters for hospitals

The Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo, has directed all the 170 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies in the country to recruit a person each for employment and training as sign interpreters to be attached to all district hospitals in the country.

This is to provide the opportunity for people with the hearing impaired, the sight and hearing impaired and the sight impaired  to communicate their health problems to the medical officers when they visit hospitals.

Mr Ofosu-Ampofo gave the directive when he celebrated the Christmas with the participants of the National Bible Camp for the Deaf organized by the Church of Christ at Akropong-Akuapem on Christmas Day.

The camp is organized annually by the Deaf Evangelistic Ministry of the Church of Christ for its members who include the hearing impaired, the sight and hearing impaired and the sight impaired.

The Minister also directed the Akuapem North District Chief Executive to get in touch with the administration of the Senior High School for the Deaf, Akuapem Mampong to help restore the electricity to the school which had been disconnected for the past two years.

He said all Metropolitan, Municipal and District assemblies in the country had been directed to set up a fund to lodge the 2.5 per cent of their common fund meant for the disabled to be used to fund facilities for the training of the disabled in their districts and part to support activities of the disabled in their areas.

He said so far about 95 per cent of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies in the country had established the fund with a representative of the disabled as a signatory to the fund.

Mr Ofosu-Ampofo said his Ministry had held discussions with the Administrator of the Common Fund for possible acquisition of buses for the disabled training institutions.

Evangelist Sam Williams of the Church of Christ, the coordinator of the camp, said the church started the annual camp for the deaf seven years ago to preach the gospel and share experiences on how to lead good lives.

Source: GNA