Nkurenkuru:Kavango West Governor Verna Sinimbo has called for the elimination of barriers that hinder persons with disabilities in rural communities, such as long distances to schools and health facilities, inaccessible buildings, and challenges in accessing transportation and information.

According to Namibia Press Agency, Sinimbo made these remarks during a stakeholder education and awareness training on the Revised National Policy on Disability and its costed implementation action plan, which began in Nkurenkuru. The campaign focuses on implementing the policy through planning, budgeting, service delivery, and decision-making.

The Revised National Policy, which covers the period from 2025 to 2035, along with its costed implementation action plan running from 2025 to 2030, was adopted by the Cabinet on July 8, 2025, and launched nationally on October 28 that year. This marks the first revision since the original policy was introduced in 1997.

Sinimbo emphasized the need to change the perception of disability, moving beyond a focus on individual impairments to addressing environmental, institutional, communication, and attitudinal barriers that impede full and equal participation. She described this as "a call to action."

Highlighting the campaign's reach, Sinimbo outlined that it should extend to regional councils, local authorities, traditional authorities, schools, health facilities, workplaces, businesses, community organizations, and households. She noted that in rural areas, the distance to services, inaccessible information, limited transport, and negative attitudes restrict participation in education, healthcare, employment, and community activities.

Nkurenkuru Town Council Mayor Andreas Katanga also highlighted the challenges faced by rural communities in Kavango West, citing distance, limited infrastructure, and the inaccessibility of facilities. He stressed that disability inclusion must extend beyond policies and conferences to every constituency, settlement, school, health facility, workplace, and household.

Katanga added that the policy supports dignity, equality, participation, and well-being but requires institutions to understand and act on their roles. He called for meaningful consultation with persons with disabilities in decisions that impact their lives.

The action plan details responsibilities and addresses resource mobilization, cooperation, implementation arrangements, monitoring, and evaluation. The training program includes discussions on disability models, legal frameworks, target groups, and policy actions, and is set to conclude on Wednesday.