DILI, 09 december 2021 (TATOLI) – The United Nations Development Program (UNDP), supported by the Government of Japan, and the Halibur Association of Deficiency Matan Timor Leste (AHDMTL) held Braille training in three municipalities to increase the participation of people with visual impairement in the upcoming elections.
UNDP Representative in Timor – Leste Munkhtuya Altangerel informed that the Braille training was conducted under the UNDP COVID-Resilient Elections (CORE-TL) Project which supports Timor-Leste’s COVID resilience at the national and municipal levels.
The trainees came from the municipalities of Aileu, Lautem, and Manufahi.
“Leaving no one behind is one of the universal principles of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which aims to reduce inequalities and vulnerabilities that undermine individual potential. Throughout the UNDP Covid Resilience Project, we are promoting the inclusion of underrepresented groups, such as women, youth, and persons with disabilities, to increase their participation in elections and access to democracy,” Munkhtuya Altangerel, told Reporters at Hotel Timor, Dili today.
The Director of AHDMTL, Gaspar Afonso, said apart from enabling the participants to be part of the upcoming elections, this inclusive education space provided them with tools that could be replicated in future training to other blind people.
“On behalf of AHMDTL I would like to thank UNDP and the Government of Japan through the Japanese Embassy in Timor – Leste for offering Brille letter training to 120 people with visual impairment, and there are more than 14,000 people with visual impairement in Timor – Leste, I hope with this collaboration AHDMTL and UNDP will cover all blind people in Timor – Leste and hope this program will continue to be expanded to other municipalities,” said Afonso.
In the same place, Kazumi Yamada, Advisor to the Japanese Embassy in Timor-Leste considers free and fair elections for every voter as the cornerstone of democracy.
“We are pleased that the braille training was successfully implemented under the COVID Resilient Elections project in Timor Leste funded by the Government of Japan and implemented by UNDP. This will contribute to making elections in Timor-Leste more inclusive not only under the COVID situation but also in all upcoming elections,” said Kazumi Yamada.
In 2022, the UNDP CORE-TL Project will continue to carry out this training and other activities in other municipalities including RAEOA to increase the capacity of Persons with Disabilities to participate in politics.
Journalist : Camilio de Sousa
Editor: Nelia B
