By IDA

 - May 22, 2020

The World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry (WNUSP) and IDA, together with HI have organised workshops in Sierra Leone and Togo on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) for members of organisations of persons with psychosocial disabilities. The aim of the programme was to train advocacy leaders within the movement of persons with psychosocial disabilities.

Workshop Objectives:

  • Provide participants with an initial or enhanced understanding of the CRPD and how to use it as a tool for advocacy.
  • Help participants to make links between the CRPD and the SDGs.
  • Strengthen their advocacy capacities through exercises and exchanges with influential national stakeholders.
  • Create links between organisations of persons with psychosocial disabilities, as well as with representatives of the wider disability movement.

Sierra Leone Workshop
From 4th to 6th December 2019, the workshop on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities - Strengthening the voices of persons with psychosocial disabilities in West Africa, took place in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

The workshop brought together members of two organisations of persons with psychosocial disabilities: Service Users and Family Members Association (SUFMA) of Sierra Leone and Cultivation For Users’ Hope (CFUH) of Liberia. Altogether 21 persons with psychosocial disabilities participated in the workshop, with 38% of women and 50% of the participants with the age of 30 or below.

Day 1: Participants were introduced to the general principles of the CRPD and the human rights-based approach to disability.

Day 2: The workshop covered links between the CRPD and the SDGs. Through group work, the participants made direct linkages between the SDGs and the CRPD, in particular related to Article 13 (Access to Justice),  Article 19 (Independent Living) and 27 (Livelihood and Employment) of the CRPD.

Day 3: During the final day the workshop was dedicated to advocacy practices. The purpose of the practice was to empower participants to use the gained knowledge on the CRPD in their advocacy activities. Participants had an opportunity to exchange with influential national stakeholders who were invited (Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Mental Health Coalition, Human Rights Commission, Community Association for Psychosocial Services, etc.). This session provided some robust and constructive exchanges between the participants and the stakeholders.

Togo Workshop
From 9th to 11th December 2019, the workshop on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities - Strengthening the voices of persons with psychosocial disabilities in West Africa, took place in Lomé, Togo.

The workshop in Lomé brought together members of three organisations of persons with psychosocial disabilities: Association Vie Libérée (AVL) and les Amis de St Jean de Dieu, two organisations active in Lomé and the Maritime region, and Gbalenfite present around Dapaong in North Togo. Altogether, 23 persons with psychosocial disabilities attended the workshop.

Group photo of the participants from the Togo Workshop

Day 1 and Day 2: participants were introduced to the general principles of  the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and state obligations, the human rights-based approach to disability, as well as Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Agenda 2030.

During Group work, several key issues regarding the situation of persons with psychosocial disabilities in Togo were raised:

  • Persons with psychosocial disabilities are highly stigmatised in Togo.
  • Dedicated services for persons with psychosocial disabilities are severally lacking.
  • Employment opportunities are very limited in Togo in general and especially for persons with psychosocial disabilities.

Day 3: The last session of the workshop was an opportunity for participants to directly interact with influential Togolese stakeholders and to put into practice the knowledge gained during the workshop. It was also an opportunity for the stakeholders to learn about the organisations of persons with psychosocial disabilities in Togo.