BISP, NDF join hands for rehabilitation of physically challenged children

ISLAMABAD: Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with National Disability & Development Forum (NDF) to work in joint collaboration for the rehabilitation of mentally or physically challenged children.

As per the agreement, initially 100 mentally challenged BISP’s beneficiary children will be added into the support net of NDF. The MoU was signed by DG Complementary Initiatives Sajid Baloch from BISP and Chief Executive Officer of NDF Abid Lashari in the presence of Secretary BISP Omar Hamid Khan. NDF is a registered non-profit organization, which has its operational working scope across the country.

The organization is extensively working in collaboration with planning and development department, Sindh to rehabilitate the challenged children of the society, since 2007. Full scale rehabilitation services are given by the NDF including Physiotherapy, Psychotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and provide independent living to 100 children with intellectual disabilities, said a press release.

The intellectually challenged children need regular therapies which require professional care and adequate facilities to bring the neglected one’s to the main stream society,” CEO NDF Abid Lashari explained.

As per (MoU), BISP will provide data of BISP beneficiaries in the selected districts to NDF as per data sharing protocol of BISP. Moreover, it is envisioned that the collaboration would involve children of BISP beneficiaries, which has any mental retardation and physical disabilities (Intellectual Disability) from the most underprivileged segments of the society to be rehabilitated and supported to live their lives independently, enabling mothers to reduce their expenses related to disability of their children with free care and cure. NDF will also share quarterly and annual reports of all activities.

“This is not ordinary partnership, rather this reflects the brotherhood between two organizations, said Secretary BISP Omar Hamid Khan. BISP is honoured to partner NDF, with a dedicated commitment of continuous support. BISP extended and assured its complete cooperation with NDF, rather encouraged to jointly enhance the operational scope of both the organizations using BISP beneficiaries’ database, the secretary added.

DG Complementary Initiatives Sajid Baloch, explained the partnership scope and briefed about the possible collaboration, dynamics between the two organizations.

In response, the CEO, NDF apprised the Secretary BISP that the organization is also successfully maintaining the database of disabled children and consistently trying to rehabilitate them through therapies. BISP has also recently participated in Special Olympics, Pakistan in collaboration with NDF. The core objective of the NDF is the empowerment of marginalized and disadvantaged groups of persons with disabilities, children, women older people and minorities, strongly efforts to build reliance and to bring them to the mainstream of society through skills development, CEO, NDF maintained.