5 win big at GCOPD fund-raising raffle

Five lucky persons have won prizes at the Guyana Council of Organisations for Persons with Disabilities’ (GCOPD) fundraising raffle on Friday.
The winners are Kaden Pyneady, Marlene Perry, Donette McFarlene, Tricia Teekah and Lela Mamadashvili; and the respective prizes won are: a laptop, an electric scooter, a 32-inch smart television, a weekend trip for two to a popular resort, and another trip for two to a resort. Consolation prizes were won by Michaela Khan-Smith, Chricel Whitney, Guil Karim and Samara Gil.
The GCOPD is the overarching body that represents the majority of organisations for persons with disabilities (OPDS) across Guyana, working in areas of advocacy, education, capacity-building, and skills development, with the OPDS representing disabilities of all types.
In December 2022, the GCOPD held its first National Youth with Disabilities Conference, in collaboration with the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), to advocate for changes within several Acts, in order to improve the quality of life for youths with disabilities in Guyana.
Concerns raised included amending the Guyana Persons With Disabilities Act to increase penalties for employers who discriminate against employees with disabilities; strengthening the reporting system in cases of discrimination; and including mandatory disability-sensitivity training sessions for staff across all sectors.
The GCOPD also brought up the need for additional accessibility measures within all public buildings, including ramps, accessible bathrooms and wide doorways, as well as accessible transportation services, traffic signals, pedestrian crossings, sidewalks and roadways.
Hindering qualified persons with disabilities from partaking in certain activities within the legislative, judicial and executive arms of the Government was also discouraged.
In an active effort to change the way persons with disabilities are referred, a September 2022 media workshop organised by the IFES encouraged reporters to use the correct terminology when referring to those with disabilities, and stay aware of data, laws and policies as those relate to those persons.