Finding a Reason to Smile Again
One Story of Recovering from a Legacy of Disability Discrimination in Central Asia
Gulnar Sagiyeva, a 42 year old woman with an intellectual disability from the Central Asian country of Kazakhstan, had lived independently most of her life.
She lived with her parents and worked as a full-time nurse until she experienced a life-altering event causing her to need support from others in her day-to-day activities. When her parents died in 2008, rather than take over her care, her sister decided to send her to an institution.
“It was a hard first couple of years. I would rarely smile,” she said.
However, these days she smiles every day. The source of her happiness? She feels empowered by her new title “Chief of the Dumplings Shop” at a cafe in Almaty, the largest city in Kazakhstan, that serves as a training center for people with disabilities.
Explaining her motivation for working at the cafe, Gular says: “I want to be back in society, and I hope I will be independent again.”
Gulnar not only helps decide the daily meals, she also shops for fresh ingredients on her own. She has found joy in making and teaching others how to make pelmeni and manti — the pork, lamb and ground beef dumplings that are popular throughout Central Asia.
The Training Cafe opened in 2014 and now employs 40 young people with intellectual disabilities. The goal is inclusion and integration of people with disabilities into the community through social entrepreneurship. Individual and group therapy sessions have helped employees of the cafe gain confidence in themselves and learn to trust again, after being abandoned in some cases.
In addition to the employment and training opportunities it gives its employees, the cafe also provides a free daily lunch to more than 120 elderly people in the community. The cafe has found paying customers by advertising on social media, and it sometimes even caters special events.
USAID funded an advocacy initiative that resulted in the inclusion of the Training Cafe model in the Government of Kazakhstan’s National Plan for the Psycho-Social Rehabilitation and Re-socialization of People with Mental Disabilities. This success will help to expand the Training Cafes to other parts of the country and help more people like Gulnar work and re-integrate into their communities.
Inspired by the success of the cafe, Almaty Mayor Baurzhan Baibek provided space for a second cafe, which opened in November.
Recovering from a Legacy of Stigma
In the former Soviet Union, which placed a heavy emphasis on self-sufficiency, physical health and the ability of individuals to work, people with disabilities were devalued and rarely seen in public. Many with physical disabilities couldn’t leave their homes without help from relatives, who would have to carry them up and down several flights of stairs in buildings with no elevators.
As a result, people with disabilities in the countries of the former Soviet Union are still routinely isolated from the rest of society, at home or in institutions. This history has created systemic societal prejudice and led to discrimination against people with disabilities in all aspects of life — education, employment, transportation and family life — effectively silencing their voices and making life difficult.
Collaborative Efforts to Increase Accessibility
Across Central Asia, organizations are working to empower people who have disabilities. In Tajikistan, Asadullo Zikrikhudoev, the chairman of the USAID-supported Society of Persons with Disabilities, or Imkoniyat, has worked alongside the Tajikistan Ministry of Architecture to make the buildings of Dushanbe and other parts of the country accessible for people with all types of disabilities.
They created a committee that has overseen the construction of accessible ramps for government buildings, schools and hospitals with an oversight council that makes sure ramps are in compliance with international accessibility standards. They also created the first permanent government council that represents the interests of people with disabilities.
Earning the Best Human Rights Defender of Tajikistan award in 2015, Asadullo was honored for his work ensuring participation and inclusion of individuals with disabilities in society.
In Kazakhstan, there are over 500,000 people with disabilities. Many are women and children who face limited livelihood opportunities and social isolation and exclusion similar to Gulnar. However, after a seven-year collaboration between USAID and the Government of Kazakhstan, the government ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in January 2015. The government has since made changes in legislation to protect the constitutional rights and freedoms of people with disabilities.
Zakhira Begaliyeva spearheaded the effort to ratify the convention through her USAID-supported organization Shyrak. She and her colleagues are all women who have overcome the social stigma of disability to seek educational and professional opportunities. Their organization works to empower individuals with disabilities to integrate into society. Through summer camps that build self-esteem, teach life skills and provide peer counseling, they are giving participants the means to achieve a new future.
“Our camps focus on expressing [the idea] that people with disabilities have the same rights as everyone — to get married, love, study, have kids, live alone and be independent,” said Zahkira.
The organization also works to improve the accessibility of public transportation, shops, theaters, cinemas, banks and schools in Almaty and in Astana.
Working with a variety of organizations and implementing partners, USAID has supported more than 150 programs and activities in 65 countries with Disability Program funding. USAID supports organizations that work to empower people with disabilities because societies that include their diverse populations are more likely to be democratic, participatory, and equitable.
About the Author
Jessica Benton Cooney is the Communications Specialist for USAID’s Center of Excellence on Democracy, Human Rights and Governance.
