The Paraplegic Centre Peshawar (PCP) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) jointly observed the International Day of Persons with Disabilities 2025 in Peshawar by organizing a major event aimed at Fostering Disability-Inclusive Societies for Advancing Social Progress in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The event brought together members of the differently abled community (PwDs) who participated in various activities designed to highlight their skills and promote their full inclusion in society.
The Provincial Minister for Health Khaliqur Rehman addressed the gathering as chief guest and praised the Paraplegic Center Peshawar for its vital role in providing facilities and services to persons with disabilities.
He assured of the Provincial Government’s full cooperation and support for the physical and psychological rehabilitation of PwDs in this regard. He also commended the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for its role over several decades in the physical rehabilitation and social inclusion of persons with disabilities in the province. He added that, unfortunately, due to the prevailing circumstances, the province is more affected by accidents and terror incidents than others, making the allocation of resources for the physical rehabilitation of the affected people indispensable.
At the occasion Mr. Bruno Radicchi, Head of the ICRC Sub-delegation, spoke about the organization’s long-standing commitment to physical rehabilitation in Pakistan. He highlighted the extensive work done in the region:
“As a core area of the ICRC’s expertise since 1984 in Pakistan, our Physical Rehabilitation Program is dedicated not just by providing comprehensive services such as the delivery of over 43,000 artificial limbs and 136,000 supportive devices since 2009, but more essentially it also contributed to promoting the societal integration of Persons with physical disabilities.” He noted the strong partnership with the Paraplegic Centre Peshawar, which was established by the ICRC in the 1980s.
“Our work in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in partnership with Paraplegic center Peshawar and other organizations, supports 10 Physical Rehabilitation Centers across the province and focuses on empowering Persons with disabilities through access to education, vocational training and Micro-Economic Initiatives, ensuring they are recognized and included as both agents and beneficiaries of social development. Such events are a vital step toward promoting the long-term sustainability and social inclusion of PWDs in the region,” Mr. Radicchi added.
Addressing the ceremony, Dr. Syed Muhammad Ilyas, Chief Executive of the Paraplegic Center Peshawar, stated that in the past, the Center provided rehabilitation facilities for spinal cord patients not only from across Pakistan but also from neighboring Afghanistan. However, he noted that the rush of patients at the center has now exceeded its capacity manifolds. Therefore, there is a need to establish four additional similar centers within Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province alone. A moving segment of the event was a special poetry session conducted by the differently abled persons people themselves, where they used poetic language to highlight themes of empowerment and inclusion. Other important organizations actively working for the empowerment of differently abled persons also participated in the event as well as set up its stalls underscoring the collaborative effort needed to achieve true societal inclusion.