The Family Trust and Care Foundation, in collaboration with the Beautiful Gate Handicapped People Centre, has donated 100 wheelchairs to 100 persons with disabilities in Gombe State to promote inclusion, improve mobility and enhance their quality of life.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony, the Chief Executive Officer of the Family Trust and Care Foundation, Dr Zainab Jamil, described the initiative as a significant milestone in the organisation’s shared commitment to promoting dignity, independence and equal opportunities for persons with disabilities.
Dr Jamil said the donation was more than the provision of mobility aids, noting that the wheelchairs would enable beneficiaries to access education, healthcare, employment and social opportunities while living more independently.
“For many of our beneficiaries, a wheelchair represents freedom. It opens doors to opportunities and restores hope where limitations once existed,” Dr Jamil said.
She reaffirmed the foundation’s commitment to inclusive development, stressing that sustainable progress can only be achieved when every member of society, regardless of physical ability, is allowed to contribute meaningfully.
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Dr Jamil also highlighted the foundation’s humanitarian interventions over the years, including medical outreaches, educational support, food relief programmes and empowerment initiatives targeting women, young people and persons with disabilities.
She also commended the Beautiful Gate Handicapped People Centre for its longstanding work in disability care, rehabilitation, advocacy and skills acquisition, describing the partnership as a continuation of efforts of both organisations to improve the lives of vulnerable people.
According to the Foundation, the collaboration builds on previous interventions that have provided assistive devices, improved access to healthcare and supported the rehabilitation and social reintegration of persons with disabilities.
It added that the initiative aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals by promoting reduced inequalities, good health and well-being, quality education and inclusive communities.
Addressing the beneficiaries, the CEO of the Family Trust and Care Foundation urged them to remain confident and determined in pursuing their aspirations, assuring them of the Foundation’s continued support through programmes that would enhance their livelihoods.
She pledged to strengthen collaboration with government agencies, development partners and other stakeholders to ensure that persons with disabilities are not left behind in national development.
Meanwhile, the Director of Media and Communications at the Beautiful Gate Handicapped People Centre, Jos, Plateau State, Sandra Nanbam Yilgwan, expressed appreciation for the partnership and reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to advancing the welfare, dignity and inclusion of persons with disabilities.
Yilgwan said the Centre, established more than two decades ago, had expanded its services to all 36 states of Nigeria and three other African countries, producing and distributing more than 42,000 tricycles to improve mobility and independence for thousands of beneficiaries.
She explained that the organisation was working with religious bodies, political leaders and traditional institutions to improve the lives of persons with disabilities across Africa through the provision of tricycles and wheelchairs, enabling beneficiaries to attend school, acquire vocational skills, engage in farming and participate fully in society.
Dr Adamu Ishiyaku, Chairman of the Commission for Persons with Disabilities in Gombe, appreciated the gesture and other interventions by the foundation for persons with disabilities.
