First Lady Fazna Ahmed has officially launched the National Disability Registry (NDR) digital portal at the function held in Alifushi, Raa Atoll, to commemorate the International Day of Persons with Disabilities 2022.
The NDR digital portal will decentralise the information on people with disabilities and the financial assistance offered to them, allowing local councils to maintain records on disabled persons living on the islands and link the relevant information to the Local Government Authority (LGA). Ministry of Gender, Family and Social Services will also permit the usage of the information for the relevant authorities and allow them to include more health information via the portal of the Aasandha national health insurance scheme.
Currently, there are no official statistics showing the exact number of disabled people in the Maldives, nor is it possible to determine the type of disability. At the same time, various types of congenital disabilities are increasing, and no data has been collected in the country. Therefore, there are many obstacles to providing state care to such people. There have also been difficulties in formulating policies and providing services for people with disabilities.
In an effort to solve such issues, President Ibrahim Mohamed Salih announced the decision to compile a national registry of people with disabilities in his last Presidential Address delivered at the Parliament of Maldives. He announced the decision to increase the disability allowance, which would be achieved with the formulation of the registry. He noted that the data collected through the registry would pave the way to improve the essential services, rehabilitation, and therapy provided to them.
National Social Protection Agency (NSPA) has stated that classifying disabilities under different categories under the registry will speed up services. The agency stated that people with disabilities will be categorised based on the level of need for assistance through consultation with doctors and that providing disability allowances under different categories will make it easier for people with disabilities to receive services, as the biggest challenge in providing services is obtaining detailed information on the individual. It added that categorising the disabilities will speed up this process by anticipating the needs of the individual beforehand, for example procuring necessities such as hearing aids by evaluating their information prior to them seeking services.