DISABILITY AND SPORTS

Sports and physical activities hold an important value in any person’s life and it holds even more importance in a person living with disability. This is because participating in sports helps to support in the rehabilitation process of the physical as well as mental health of the disabled people. In today’s time, the idea of people with disabilities participating in sports and other physical activities is not something new. In fact, many countries are starting to adopt ways to bring out new ideas that help people living with disabilities to come forward to participate in various kinds of physical activities.

Even developing countries like Nepal has joined in the initiative with the introduction of NeWBA (Nepal Wheelchair Basketball Association) established on October 3, 2010 to promote the game among the disabled people of Nepal and motivate them positively. NeWBA is only one association which is officially recognized by Nepal Olympic Committee, National Para Olympic Committee, and Nepal Basketball Association. To support the work of this association, Marie Stopes Nepal has lent a helping hand to the association by sponsoring some of their games, and more importantly by providing education on sexual and reproductive health to the young people with disability and making them aware of the importance of SRHR. At present, there are approximately 1.5 million disabled youth in Nepal and the majority of them are neglected of sexual and reproductive education because of the myth surrounding disabled people that they would not have the same sexual needs.

And in its aim of providing SRHR education to all, Marie Stopes Nepal has strived to reach every person even the people living with disability so that everyone in the country has the equal right to SRHR education. Marie Stopes Nepal has trained young people to provide SRHR education which is disabled friendly to the physically challenged people of Nepal.  The youth trainers provide the trainings in a friendly manner which makes the training sessions much more interesting. The training covers various sexual and reproductive health topics; some of them are adolescence, menstrual hygiene, masturbation, contraceptives, and the importance of safe sex.

In the process of providing training, the trainers face a lot of challenges. One of the challenges they face is the need to communicate their ideas and training to the disable population in their local language. But, in spite of these challenges, our youth volunteers work towards its goal of providing SRHR to all by brainstorming on different ways to provide awareness on sexual and reproductive health and hygiene in the most effective manner.