Hon. Balaam Barugahara Ateeny, the New Minister of State for Youth and Children Affairs has reiterated the need for the upcoming National Population and Housing Census to capture as much data as possible on the numbers and state of people living with disabilities in the country.
The newly appointed minister wants the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) to generate sufficient information from the census that will help the government plan better for the PWD population.
“We have a national census coming up, and I am going to reach out to the officials at UBOS to find out if they plan to fully cover that, and if not, I will ask them to include that as a topic,” he said.
“We need to know how many PWDs we have so that it enables the government to plan well for them.
“Being disabled does not mean that you are not able; some of them are more able than us, the abled people.”
Hon. Barugahara was speaking at the launch of the 2024 Mak Marathon, which is slated for August 18, 2024.
The 21-kilometer run is hoped to raise money for the construction of a student center for Makerere University students living with disabilities.
In his remarks, the Minister, a former Makerere student and employee, pledged his full support for the marathon. He also promised to engage other government officials, including fellow cabinet ministers, to be part of the initiative.
“I am going to work closely with my boss, the Prime Minister, to whip all government officials, those who went through Makerere and those who didn’t, to take part in this exercise,” he said.
“I pledge support for this noble cause, and I will personally take part,” he added.
