The Ministry of Social Development seeks to develop its programmes, activities, and services directed to various segments of society so that each individual can invest his full potential to achieve an adequate standard of living in a cohesive family and a prosperous society. This is done through the programmes of support, empowerment, rehabilitation and training of families and cases capable of work and production. According to the mechanisms and services of protection and social care within a framework of sustainable development integration and within the priorities, plans and targeted social policies, all of this is done in partnership with the relevant authorities.
SERVICES FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
With the aim of enabling, rehabilitating and caring for persons with disabilities to rely on themselves in managing their lives, the Ministry offers a range of different welfare programmes and social services for this category, including the ‘Vocational Evaluation and Rehabilitation Centre’, which aims to rehabilitate the disabled who are eligible for vocational rehabilitation. The number of people enrolled in the center’s programmes during the first half of 2021 was (104), of whom (57) were males and (47) were female.
The ‘Al-Aman Rehabilitation Centre’ also provides social, health, rehabilitation, psychological and therapeutic services. The total number of children enrolled in the center is 296, including 192 males and 104 females.
There are also Al Wafa’ Centre for the Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities that aim to care for children with disabilities between the ages of (2-14) years of both genders suffering from various simple and medium mental disabilities, hearing disabilities and motor disabilities. The number of those enrolled in Al Wafa centres reached 2340, including 1382 males and 958 females, distributed in 28 centres in the various governorates of the Sultanate of Oman.
There are also private rehabilitation centres supported by the ministry, which provides services for persons with disabilities, working alongside the role entrusted to government institutions and centres. They provided services during the first half of 2021 for 1275 enrolled, including 947 males and 328 females. The ministry provides a set of prosthetic devices and other support services for persons with disabilities, whose number stood at (1106) individuals, including 525 males and 581 females. The number of persons registered in the disabled card system granted to persons with disabilities reached (685) persons, 442 are males and 243 are females.
Family development
With the aim of developing and protecting the family, preserving its entity and cohesion, and providing the appropriate environment for it through plans and projects directed at empowering, developing and raising the efficiency of family members socially and economically, the Ministry worked to provide various social programmes and services such as counselling services for people who suffer from some social, economic and psychological problems, to minimise or limit these problems and to find appropriate solutions to them in light of the rapid life changes and influences.
The number of beneficiaries from the family counselling services office reached 803, including 325 males and 478 females during the first half of 2021.
Beneficiaries from phone counselling through the dedicated line reached 17 calls with four males and 13 females. The ministry’s Family Protection Department also works on developing awareness and care plans and programmes, providing the necessary protection services for various family members, and dealing with cases that are exposed to various family problems and issues. The Department often deals with issues of women exposed to dilemmas. The number of those women reached 12 cases in the first half of this year.
As for the number of cases of children subjected to abuse, according to the number of reports received by the ‘Child Protection Line’ on the toll-free number (1100), there were 372 cases, 185 males and 187 females. Also the number of cases of children exposed to abuse dealt with by the Child Protection Committees reached 782 cases, (413 males and 369 females). The number of human trafficking cases reached 4, all of the expatriate nationalities, and they were provided with the necessary care and were treated according to the applicable law in this regard.
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
