Activities to mark the International Day of Persons with disabilities were held in Hanoi today. Nguyen Huy Ban, Secretary General of the Vietnam Association for People with Disabilities calls for support for people with disabilities to integrate into the community. “We will cooperative with relevant ministries and agencies to raise people’s awareness about the need to assist people with disabilities. The disabled people also need to strive forward in their lives,” he said. Vietnam now has around 6.7 million people with disabilities.

On the occasion, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon released a message calling on governments, civil society and the global community to work alongside persons with disabilities, saying their participation is essential to achieve inclusive, sustainable and equitable development worldwide. Mr. Ban said that although there has been significant progress in raising awareness of the rights of persons with disabilities and many countries have committed to protect their rights through international agreements, they still experience unequal conditions. The annual observance of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities on 3 December was established in 1981 during the International Year for Disabled Persons. The Day aims to promote a better understanding of disability issues with a focus on the rights of people with disabilities and the gains that could be derived from integrating them better in every aspect of the political, social, economic and cultural life of their communities.