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Disabled must not be forgotten in development drive, Ecuador tells UN

Disabled must not be forgotten in development drive, Ecuador tells UN

Vice-President Lenin Moreno Garcés of Ecuador
Ecuador’s Vice-President cautioned at the United Nations today that the drive to realize the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have left out an important segment of the population – persons with disabilities.

Ecuador’s Vice-President cautioned at the United Nations today that the drive to realize the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have left out an important segment of the population – persons with disabilities.

“Disability is not an inability, but diversity,” Lenin Moreno Garcés told the General Assembly’s annual high-level segment.

“Just as there is geographic, cultural and climatic diversity, there are different capacities,” he said. “There is talent, there is heart, there is dedication, there is perseverance and will.”

The South American nation carried out a study of all persons with disabilities, which found instances of the disabled being dumped into holes in the ground and in cages, Mr. Garcés said.

Ecuador has made great strides in helping those with disabilities, providing the necessary technical assistance, housing, medical attention, job placement and education, he noted.

In addition, the Vice- President said, the country has set up a bond equivalent to a living wage to recognize the work of people with severe physical or intellectual disabilities.

Scores of world leaders gathered at UN Headquarters last week to assert their commitment in the remaining five years until the 2015 deadline for the achievement of the MDGs, the eight anti-poverty targets.