Ramp it up…Fix it up

To kick-start the national campaign to install wheelchair ramps in schools and health centres across the country, the Digicel Foundation joined teams from various government agencies and community members on Labour Day, May 23, to put in the first one at the Cumberland Road Health Centre in Spanish Town, St Catherine.

The installation attended by Prime Minister, the Most Honourable Andrew Holness, paved the way for the year-long ‘Ramp it Up’ campaign which will be carried out in partnership with Digicel Foundation.

This effort is in line with the Foundation’s ‘Ramps in Schools’ programme launched in 2015 and is set to give the disabled access to an additional 146 public schools across the island.

Working with the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment & Sport, the Digicel Foundation will create a more welcoming environment for persons with Special Needs, while leading the mandate for accessibility for all. While the health facility was being spruced up, the Foundation and its volunteers were busy completing renovations to the Portmore Self-Help Disability Organisation (PSHDO) in Gregory Park, St Catherine. The PSHDO is run by persons with various Special Needs who press for improvements in the quality of lives for persons living with disabilities in and around St Catherine. Since 2015, through its initial partnership with the HEART Trust NTA, the Digicel Foundation’s Ramps in Schools programme has installed almost 20 ramps and lifts in schools across the island.