Accra: Participants at a recent workshop to develop an advocacy toolkit on unpaid care work have highlighted significant policy gaps that exclude parent caregivers of persons with disabilities. The workshop, organized by NETRIGHT in partnership with Alinea International, brought to light the challenges faced by these caregivers due to insufficient policy support.

According to Ghana News Agency, Mrs. Bernice Sam, a facilitator at the workshop, emphasized that existing policies related to social protection and care issues, such as the Social Protection Policy, Ageing Policy, Mental Health Policy, Inclusive Education Policy, and the National Health Insurance Policy, do not adequately address the needs of parents and family caregivers of persons with disabilities (PwDs). She noted a significant oversight in these policies, which fails to support the specific care provided by these caregivers.

Mrs. Sam further explained that while Ghana has implemented various initiatives aimed at reducing gender inequalities, these efforts are often too generalized and do not address the specific challenges faced by different groups of women, including those caring for PwDs. This oversight leaves many caregivers without the necessary support from existing social protection frameworks.

Mrs. Hannah Awadzi, another participant at the workshop, shared her experiences, highlighting the burden of unpaid care work that parents and families of PwDs often bear without any governmental assistance. She pointed out that facilities like the creche at the Office of the Head of Civil Service may not be equipped to accommodate children with disabilities, thereby leaving the responsibility of care solely to the families.

Mrs. Awadzi also noted that many parents of PwDs are forced to engage in long hours of unpaid care work and often need to employ additional help at their own expense to manage their caregiving responsibilities. This lack of support underscores the need for more inclusive policies that recognize and address the unique challenges faced by caregivers of persons with disabilities.