By Zofeen Ebrahim
KARACHI, Pakistan, May 20 2010 (IPS)

Talib Hussain, 29, became the sole breadwinner of his family of seven after his father suffered a stroke that left him half paralysed. Hussain brings home 4,000 Pakistani rupees (about 47 U.S. dollars) monthly, which he dutifully turns over to his mother.

Unmindful of his disability, Talib Hussain (far left) is now a proud breadwinner of his family. Credit: Kulsum Ebrahim/IPS

He may well be referring to his mental age. Hussain may not have the mental ability of others his age, but he is far from unproductive. He works in a commercial plant nursery called ‘Green Fingers’, and as such is one of males, aged 14 to 34, employed by Naima Khan, 48, an advocate for special needs children and people with disabilities.

Khan said he wanted to give these individuals an opportunity to earn and not be a burden to society. Today, the 1,672-square metre-nursery that she put up a year ago is teeming with potted plants, totaling 15,000 and counting, the result of her workers’ painstaking labour.

Based on data from the Sindh government’s Social Welfare Department (SWD), there are over 7,000 registered non-governmental organisations in the province, with only 65 of them working with special children.

“But these just train them in various skills. As far as I know, Khan’s is the only one that has provided its wards with an employment opportunity. That is truly commendable,” said Hijab Manzar, deputy director of the SWD.

In one corner of the nursery, two blind men are filling plastic bags with loose soil. In another part, a trio is arduously re-arranging pots. Soon out comes a lanky young-looking lad merrily balancing a wheelbarrow while it wobbles on the ground, evincing no sign of the physical disability that used to hinder his mobility.

Nine months ago, Irfan Arshad could barely walk straight and kept falling whenever he tried, leaving him with bruises. “Today, he not only walks upright, but also carries pots,” beamed Khan.

Citing data from the World Health Organisation, Dr Abdul Hameed Khan, chairman of the Department of Special Education in Punjab University in Lahore, said at least of six percent – or some 9.7 million – of Pakistan’s total population of 163 million is suffering from some form of disability. Thirty percent of them, or 2.9 million, are children aged 5 to 18 years old.

Based on a 2006 a survey he conducted for the government, Dr Khan noted that there are 500 special education institutions across the South Asian country. Together they are catering to approximately 28,000-30,000 children. “This is not even 1 percent of (Pakistan’s) 2.9 million school-age children with special needs,” Khan told IPS in a phone interview from Lahore.

Having worked with special children herself for over 10 years in a non- governmental organisation in Karachi, the Karachi Vocational and Training Centre (KVTC), Khan knew that outdoor activities could help “improve their fine and gross motor skills, teach them communication and socialisation skills, stimulate their sensory perception as well as their creativity and curiosity.”

She added that she wanted to show “that these people may not be like you and me, but they have hidden talent and all it needs is for someone to unlock that for them.”

When Hussain, Khan’s worker, brought his first salary home six months ago in December, his mother broke into tears.

“It was an incredible moment for the family,” said Banny Joseph, a special educator working with KVTC, who had accompanied Hussain that day on his way home. “They (his family) said they never imagined that Hussain would one day be taking care of them,” said Joseph. “God truly works in strange ways,” said Khan.

The KVTC has sent some of its wards to Khan.

Khursheed Chishti, 73, cannot thank Green Finger’s visionary enough for helping her son Bashir Ahmed, 29, who is suffering from Down’s syndrome.

Chishti said she has noticed a sea change in her son since Khan took him under her wing at Green Fingers. “He’s happier and is less aggressive,” said the proud mother.

For her efforts to help the disabled, Khan has found an ally in the city government.

When Anwar Kamal, the administrator of Saddar Town (one of 18 administrative units in the southern port city of Karachi, capital of Sindh province), heard about a garbage dump in his area being converted into a green patch back in December 2009, he decided to visit the place.

“It was an emotionally uplifting sight to see people who are otherwise considered a liability by our society busy working there,” he said.

Kamal then made sure that he would support Khan all the way. “I knew she would need a lot of financial support. As a first step, we decided to waive off the rent,” he said.

To ensure Khan could get the needed assistance from the provincial government, the SWD encouraged her to set up an NGO, under which Green Fingers would operate.

“The only way we could assist her was if she could get herself registered,” said SWD’s Manzar. Khan did just that. “We can now recommend her for government grants,” she said.

According to Manzar, the government must allocate two percent of government jobs to people with special needs. But that is far from reality.

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