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Welcome to MNI-NNAD Project. This MNI project’s funding is from where? From MNI in USA NNAD is partnering with MNI, focusing on Human Rights of the Youth in Zambezi Region. My Name is Paul Nanyeni. I am the NNAD Director. I am working with my partner Beata. It is very Important for MNI to partner with NNAD. We now advocate for Deaf Human Rights. This partnership between NNAD and MNI is very welcomed as it will help Deaf people raise awareness on their Human Rights. My name is Beata Armas. I am the NNAD Chairperson. Thank you! Love you!
About the Organization
Namibia National Association of the Deaf was established in 1991 and is officially registered with the Ministry of Health and Social Service as a welfare organization. NNAD is the sole representative of the Deaf Namibian and has the mandates to protect and safeguard their interests. The association is a politically and religiously uncommitted association whose purpose it is to protect the social, financial, linguistic and cultural interests of Deaf people. The NNAD vision is that the language, culture, and legacy of Deaf Namibia will be acknowledged and respected in the pursuit of life, freedom, and equality. NNAD Mission: 1) To preserve, advocate for, protect and promote the civil, human and linguistic rights of the Deaf; 2) To lobby for an integrated, accessible and appropriate services that are responsive to the needs of the Namibian Deaf Community.
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Hello! My name is Beata Armas. My sign name is [hand on forehead]. I am the NNAD Chairperson. Now I am happy to have a new project. Who’s supporting the project? MNI. We are partners. We will train deaf persons on human rights. We will train in the Zambezi region. Many deaf persons there do not know about human rights. We will train them so they can learn and become aware. They can advocate for their human rights. Right now deaf persons do not have access to information, nor access to school, or others. Nothing, so we will train deaf people. Especially those who have not attended school or live very very far. So we must support them. When they are trained, they will be aware and able to advocate for their human rights themselves. Thank you!
About the Project
This project aims to work towards the advancement and promoting of the Deaf community’s inclusion, access and equality by giving them a collective voice to leverage their human rights through demonstrated understanding of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and other legal instruments. Deaf Youth in the Zambezi region will be trained in advocacy skills and become empowered to promote for their human rights. The goal of this partnership is to ensure a successful project that will positively impact the lives of Deaf Youth in Namibia.
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Ok! My name is Paul Nanyeni. My sign name is [X on chin]. I work as NNAD Director. We received funding from MNI for training Deaf Youth in the Zambezi Region with the goal of advocacy with CPRD and to provide support to them. Deaf persons in the Zambezi Region has been marginalized so we decided to develop a project to empower them and encourage them to advocate for themselves. if deaf persons continue to be marginalized, it means the hearing community will not help with accessing services. NNAD and [another organization] understands that the UN CRPD has been ratified so now we need to focus on Human Rights to achieve our needs in the same way deaf people achieve internationally around the world. Now it’s good that MNI is supporting our project. We can achieve our goals and our partnership will work and be positive. Thank you!
Update #1
WFD Trip
NNAD delegates met with MNI staff at the World Federation of the Deaf Congress. From L to R: delegates, from LR, Lisa, the MNI Deaf Center Manager, theMNI Media personal, Beata Armas, NNAD project co-facilitator, Sarah, MNI Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist and Paul, NNAD project leader. Paul and Beata will implement the NNAD-MNI project in Namibia.
NNAD’s Partners: National Deaf Association of Lesotho and Swaziland National Deaf Association
Update #2
Deaf Human Rights training workshop for Deaf Youth
NNAD hosted a Deaf Human Rights training workshop for Namibian Deaf Youth in the Zambezi region. The Zambezi region is in the Northern Eastern part of Namibia, about 1230 KM from the Capital City of Namibia Windhoek or a 14 hour drive.
The region is home to many Deaf youth, which some have never attended school due to lack of access to schools for the Deaf. The Region has no School for the Deaf but there is a single Unit that caters for the grades 1-7 with teachers often inexperienced in Sign Language. NNAD saw it was important to reach out to these members and provide training about their human rights which was made possible by funding from Mil Neck International.
