Dong Ha, Quang Tri (21 December 2020) — Project RENEW on Monday in collaboration with local partners held a workshop to evaluate the implementation of the victim assistance and disability support program during 2019-2020 and discuss the 2021 action plan.

Mr. Thai Vinh Lieu, President of the Quang Tri Provincial Association for Disabled Persons, Agent Orange Victims, Disability Support and Protection of the Children’s Rights (Quang Tri DPO) and Mr. Dang Quang Toan, Project RENEW’s Victim Assistance/Disability Support Program Manager, co-chaired the workshop that gathered over 60 representatives from the Quang Tri DPO, the Provincial Blind Association and their chapters in nine districts, and the Provincial Legal Aid Center.

For the past period, Project RENEW’s victim assistance and disability support program faced unprecedented challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the six months of 2020 and the historic flood in the mid-October. However, RENEW timely consulted our donors for adjusting the action plan and closely cooperated with the local partners in the implementation. Basically, the objectives of Project RENEW’s Victim Assistance/Disability Support program funded by Irish Aid, Friends of Project RENEW, and other foundations and individuals have been achieved.

For the past period, Project RENEW’s victim assistance and disability support program faced unprecedented challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the six months of 2020 and the historic flood in mid-October. However, RENEW timely consulted our donors for adjusting the action plan and closely cooperated with the local partners in the implementation. As a result, the objectives of Project RENEW’s Victim Assistance/Disability Support program funded by Irish Aid, Friends of Project RENEW, and other foundations and individuals have basically been met.

In 2020, Project RENEW’s Victim Assistance/Disability Support program has achieved the following results:

• 166 persons with disabilities provided with prostheses and other assistive devices to restore mobility and reintegrate into the community.
• 15 visual-impaired persons in Dakrong district trained on making brooms for generating income.
• 25 information sessions on the Disability Law organized with the participation of 990 disabled persons. These sessions helped improved their knowledge of the disability policies and answered their concerns.
•  Six Disability Law Knowledge contests with integrated musical performance held in three districts of Dakrong, Huong Hoa and Gio Linh drawing the attendance of nearly 100 people in each event.
• 20 families with severely disabled persons in Cam Lo, Vinh Linh, Hai Lang, and Quang Tri Town received support to raise cows.
• 30 billboards with disability information installed in 2017 renovated in order to raise public solidarity toward disabled persons and explosive ordnance reporting hotline number.
• 520 T-shirts and mugs with disability support messages and explosive ordnance reporting hotline numbers distributed to persons with disabilities and cadres.
• 30 collaborators from local chapters of the DPO trained on email and social media use to increase the effectiveness of pro-disabled communications.
• 28 members of the DPO chapters rained on communication skills.

Representative of Project RENEW also informed the workshop participants of the 2021 Action Plan approved by Irish Aid, which includes:

• Mobile physical rehabilitation program.
• Vocation training for the blind and disabled persons to earn independent income.
• Improve productivity for some blind associations.
• Disability Law information campaigns at grassroots level.
• Integrate Disability Law information in musical performance for disabled persons.
• Sustain billboards with pro-disabled messages and explosive ordnance hotline number.
• Flood relief support to the families with disabilities.

During the workshop, Project RENEW and local partners has had an opportunity to discuss in details the activities, collaboration and implementation mechanism as well as sharing the needs of disabled persons to ensure effective performance in the coming time.