The Albino Foundation Public Notice
An appeal has been made to the government, parents, and stakeholders to support the education of Deaf children while employing and empowering Deaf adults in Nigeria.
Mr Isaac Awonuga, a Deaf Nigerian philanthropist based in the United States made the appeal in an interview with INN in commemoration of his birthday on Wednesday, 25 January, 2023.
Awonuga says the appeal becomes necessary because of the uneven attention deaf children continually receive from stakeholders in the area of education.
According to him: “Deaf children deserve better education because they have potentials for greatness”. Awonuga insists that if a deaf child is adequately trained and given all necessary supports, he/she has the potential to become a president, governor, senator, professor, doctor, engineer, etc.
While narrating how his father made efforts to support his education as a child and thus saw the best of him, Awonuga called on parents to give their deaf children equal opportunities as their hearing siblings.
The philanthropist urged parents to send their wards early to school, adding that teachers should not beat these children, because according to him, doing so will send the children out of school and turn them into begging.
Awonuga, who is passionate about Deaf education, also calls for employment of more Deaf teachers. He says having a Deaf teacher with ability to effectively communicate offer better chances of success with Deaf learners than other categories of teachers.
He further called for employment of more Deaf, work age adults in Nigeria. According to him, it is the only way to stop street begging among them.
“We have so many deaf persons who have graduated with good certificates but cannot find jobs because the government failed to employ or support them” he said.
Credit: Inclusive News Network
