Hepl for blind people to integrate with society
Ha Noi, March 11 (VNA) -- A rehabilitation and vocational training centre is needed to help the blind find jobs and improve living conditions, says Nguyen Khanh, the Ho Chi Minh City Association for the Blind.
Khanh says the centre will help the blind recover their working capability, and provide vocational training and jobs for them.
Ho Chi Minh City has about 4,000 blind people, blind from birth or the war or accidents. About 1,500 of them have the capability to work. However, only 600 have jobs, that earn them a stable income while the remainder are facing difficulties with unemployment or live off relatives.
In the subsidised economy, the blind earned their living by handicraft production and husbandry and their products bought by State agencies. But their hand-made products in the market economy are unable to compete with high-quality industrial products. Without vocational training, most find it difficult to obtain stable jobs and incomes. Only 100 blind people now earn their living from handicrafts, 400 from animal husbandry and the remainder by teaching music or massage.
The city has made efforts to care for the blind, help them contribute to and integrate with society. Eighteen of 22 districts have set up associations for the bind where their 1,100 members exchange experiences and help each other to develop household economy. The city has provided VND 3 billion for the associations' activities.
The national job creation programme has provided loans to almost 400 blind people to made their own business, with each earning a monthly VND 250,000-300,000.
The city has opened three schools for the blind and opened many classes to teach them Braille and information technology.
About 600 blind people can now read and write in Braille - 15 of them are university graduates - six are studying at universities and colleges and more than 200 in schools.
The city has also established a school for 58 blind orphans and provided regular aid for hundreds blind people.--VNA
