Persons with disabilities to benefit from duty-free exemptions
Minister Cathy Hughes flanked by members of the Guyana Council of Organisations for Persons with Disabilities during the donation
The Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) will be providing duty-free exemptions for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) to purchase mobile phones and motor vehicles through a partnership with the Public Telecommunications Ministry.
This was announced on Friday by Public Telecommunications Minister, Cathy Hughes, who explained that these devices will be modified to suit the requirements of these persons.
Brakes will be relocated to the steering wheels of cars while applications on mobile devices will allow for persons to receive assistance through communication.
“GRA and ourselves as a Public Telecommunications Ministry and the National Commission on Disability are just about to start the implementation of the import duty and VAT exemptions for smartphones and also for vehicles. The phones must be able to download certain software and applications and the vehicles must be able to be customised or retrofitted,” Hughes outlined.
The Ministry would have donated tablets and a robotics kit to the Guyana Council of Organisations for Persons with Disabilities to ensure that equal opportunities exist.
“We recognise that technology can be a game changer. Technology and access to technology. Here I mean accessibility features on smartphones, tablets, websites allow members of the visually or hearing impaired communities or any others to participate in a meaningful way in society,” the Minister said.
Ganesh Singh of the Guyana Society for the Blind voiced that this initiative will prove beneficial to many persons in accessing information and other services.
A survey conducted by the National Commission on Disability has revealed that 11,713 persons are living with a disability in Guyana.
The survey was conducted in Regions Two, Three, Five, and 10, while a pilot was done in Region Six in 2016. Region Three had the highest number of persons with disabilities, followed by Region Six.
Disabilities were categorised as physical/mobility disability, visual/seeing disability, hearing/speech disability, learning/cognitive disability, mental health and medical/other disability.
