By Kodjo Adams, Eugenia Otenwaa
Accra, April 4, GNA – The Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations (GFD) has urged the Electoral Commission (EC) to install adjustable voting booths at polling stations to ensure accessibility for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs).
The Federation also called for sign language interpreters in areas with significant numbers of PWDs to enhance communication.
Mr. Moses Fordjour, Monitoring and Evaluation Manager of GFD, made the appeal at a validation workshop on the 2024 Election Observation report in Accra.
The report, funded by the Star Ghana Foundation, deployed observers to 417 polling stations across all 16 regions of Ghana, focusing on facilities and protocols during the 2024 elections.
“We deliberately designed our observation so that observers could spend quality time sitting and watching the process from when polls opened at 7am until midday,” said Mr. Fordjour.
The report revealed that 40 per cent of voting booths were too high for wheelchair users and persons of short stature.
However, it noted that 79 per cent of polling stations were generally accessible to PWDs.
The Bono East and Upper West regions achieved 100 per cent accessibility, while the Western North region performed poorly on accessibility metrics.
Positive practices highlighted included polling stations on flat ground, absence of physical barriers, spacious voting areas, and supportive electoral officials prioritizing assistance for elderly and disabled voters.
Mr. Fordjour noted that 93 per cent of polling stations had priority seating for PWDs, and 82 per cent provided tactile ballot jackets for visually impaired voters.
Challenges identified included sandy grounds hindering wheelchair users, high placement of voting materials, inadequate ramps, and non-adaptive voting instructions for visually impaired individuals.
“Voting instructions and materials were not adaptive to individuals with visual impairments in some locations. Centres with limited spaces, car tyres fixed in pathways, and poor networking grounds added to the difficulties,” the report stated.
The report also observed disputes between party agents over assisting voters with disabilities.
“There were heated arguments as to who should help this person to vote, which was not a good sign. That means that we didn’t really agree on the nature of assistance and who should step forward when situations like this arose,” Mr. Fordjour said.
He emphasized the urgent need for electoral reforms to improve accessibility and inclusivity for PWDs.
Participants commended the EC for granting the Federation’s observers expanded accreditation, including access to constituency collation centres and the National Collation Centre.
GNA
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