Unemployment of half of 3 thousand blind people of working age in Yazd province

Yazd - Director General of Welfare of Yazd province said: There are about three thousand blind and partially sighted people of working age in the province, only half of them are employed, and the employment of others requires the participation of executive bodies, industries and the private sector.

According to Mehr reporter, Nader Homenian, in a meeting with reporters on Saturday morning, referring to the employment challenges of blind and partially sighted people, stated: According to the available statistics, about 6,000 blind and partially sighted people have been identified in Yazd province, of which about 3,000 people have reached the working age and nearly 1,500 of them are employed.

He stated that the employment of people with disabilities, especially the blind, requires the cooperation of all sectors of the society, and added: despite the good employment situation in Yazd province, the utilization of the capacity of the blind and partially sighted people in the labor market faces limitations and solutions should be considered to remove these obstacles.

The General Director of Welfare of Yazd Province continued: In the meeting of the Employment Council of the province, the managers of the executive bodies were asked to identify and introduce the existing capacities in their administrative structure to create job opportunities that match the capabilities of the blind.

Referring to welfare's job creation performance last year, Homenian said: Using tools such as employer's share insurance premium payment, self-employment insurance support, and job creation facilities, last year more than a thousand job opportunities were created within the framework of this group's obligations; However, achieving the goals of a small number of employment alone does not mean solving the employment problems of certain groups of the target society.

He stated: Initial estimates show that the job capacities that can be identified in executive bodies for the blind are limited, and even if these capacities increase, a significant part of job seekers will still need job opportunities.

The Director General of Welfare of Yazd province emphasized the necessity of the participation of industries and the private sector in this field and noted: suggestions have been made about using the capacity of social responsibilities of companies and allocating a part of employment opportunities to people with disabilities, with priority for the blind, and following this issue can help to develop job opportunities for this group.

Prevention of blindness with timely screening

In another part of his speech, Homenian considered the prevention of blindness and low vision as one of the welfare priorities and said: Children's vision screening is one of the important programs of this group, and timely diagnosis of vision problems and referral of children to receive medical services can prevent some cases of blindness.

Pointing to the importance of families' participation in this plan, he added: Raising awareness about the necessity of screening children aged three to seven and using the capacity of the media to encourage families to participate in this program plays an important role in the effectiveness of preventive measures.

Adaptation and culturalization for the social presence of people with disabilities

The Director General of Welfare of Yazd province also emphasized the necessity of making urban environments suitable for people with disabilities and stated: providing the opportunity to attend and use city facilities equally for all citizens is one of the requirements of social development, and action should be taken to remove obstacles for people with disabilities in public spaces.

Saying that real development is achieved when all members of the society can benefit from the available opportunities and capacities, Khomanian added: A society cannot be considered developed if a part of its citizens are deprived of effective presence in the society due to environmental and social restrictions.

He emphasized the role of the media in correcting social attitudes towards people with disabilities and said: Disability should not be the reason for excluding people from social opportunities, and public culture can help increase social acceptance and provide more opportunities for these people to participate.