Policy Advisor to the Vice President, Dr. Ofosu Ampofo announces tertiary support, District Disability Desks, DACF hike to 5% at Koforidua Day of Help; CEM to build 16 Ability Villages for 7,000 PWDs_
Ghana has announced a sweeping inclusion agenda for over 2 million persons living with disabilities, anchored on free tertiary education, a mandatory 5% employment quota, and a nationwide Ability Village project, as the Vice Presidency reframes disability rights from charity to justice.
Representing Her Excellency Vice President Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang at the Day of Help for Persons with Disabilities in Koforidua on Friday October 30th, 2026, Policy Advisor Dr. Samuel Ofosu Ampofo said disability inclusion is a matter of human rights, not occasional generosity.
“A nation is not judged solely by the strength of its economy or beauty of its infrastructure. It is judged by how it treats its most vulnerable citizens,” he said, conveying the Vice President’s warm greetings to Rev. Dr. Steve Mensah and the Charismatic Evangelistic Ministry (CEM).
He disclosed that Ghana’s 2021 Population and Housing Census puts persons with disabilities at 2.4 million, representing about 8% of the population, yet World Bank data shows over 70% remain excluded from formal employment and education.
To break the exclusion cycle, Dr. Ofosu Ampofo on behalf of the Vice President outlined major policy shifts by President John Dramani Mahama’s administration:
First, free tertiary education for persons with disabilities, including tuition and residential support, backed by an amendment to the GETFund Act to provide statutory financing. This builds on the Inclusive Education Policy 2015 introduced when Prof. Opoku-Agyemang was Minister of Education.
Second, economic empowerment: allocation of the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) to PWDs has been increased from 3% to 5% this year, and disability desks will be established in all 261 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies.
Third, legal and employment reforms: Cabinet has approved amendment to the Persons with Disabilities Act, 2006 (Act 715) to align with the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and the President has announced a minimum 5% employment quota in public and private institutions, with tax incentives for compliant private employers. The Ministry of Gender is already processing 272 graduates with disabilities for employment via Ghana Education Service.
“The greatest obstacles are not physical conditions but society’s barriers — buildings without ramps, schools without learning aids, attitudes that mistake disability for inability,” he said.
Head of CEM Ability Village, Fred Nuer said the church’s charity arm currently supports over 7,000 PWDs in Koforidua and adjoining communities in the Eastern Region with free medical care, assistive devices, surgeries, food and vocational training.
He announced commencement of the CEM Ability Village — a sustainable community offering technical and vocational training, specialized healthcare and rehabilitation, software development, hardware repair, counselling, assisted living and affordable housing, with a vision to replicate it across all 16 regions of Ghana.
Both leaders called on Corporate Ghana, development partners and churches to move beyond tokenism to long-term partnerships, stressing: “Nothing about persons with disabilities should be decided without their meaningful participation. “CEM Ability Village intends to be the leading voice in inclusion for People With Disabilities (PWD) in Ghana.
Story by : Akora Kofi Darko
