They say disability does not equate to inability. Meet Yirlieb Simon, an extraordinary individual who turned his disability into a source of empowerment for his fellow members of the disability community.
After losing his leg due to a snake bite on the farm while working to fund his secondary education, Simon made a conscious choice not to let his disability define his life. Instead, he used his experience as an inspiration to help others facing similar challenges.
Yirlieb Simon established a prosthetic manufacturing center dedicated to providing high-quality prosthetic limbs to disabled individuals across all five regions of the north.
“I was able to walk again because of the prosthetic leg I was provided, and I was motivated to learn how to manufacture them to support my colleagues to enable them to walk, move around, and be independent to do their daily activities. I also aim to bridge the gap between the north and the south in terms of access to prosthetic legs.”
Simon envisions expanding the center and offering training for individuals with disabilities, equipping them with the skills to create prosthetic limbs for sustainable livelihoods and a sense of purpose.
“Nowadays, it’s difficult for people with disabilities to find work, so I wish to expand my center to train my colleagues with the skills I have acquired so they can also have independent work to enhance their livelihood.”
“I am very excited and happy that through my work, many colleagues in the disability community have been impacted, especially Frank, who recently returned to school thanks to the prosthetic leg I manufactured for him.”
Yirlieb Simon urged persons with disabilities who resort to begging to desist from such actions and instead learn a trade.
“I advise my colleagues who beg to stop and see themselves as capable individuals. They should find an alternative job or skill to develop themselves to earn a livelihood instead of begging on the streets.”
Frank Jilimah
A beneficiary of Simon’s assistance is 13-year-old Frank Jilimah, a physically challenged student with a passion for engineering from Nansongdo in the Nanumba North District of the Northern Region. Frank was once healthy, strong, and intelligent until an unexpected incident left him with bleak prospects.
Following the amputation of his right leg due to a tricycle accident in 2020 while returning home from the Chamba community, Frank turned to crafting vehicles, trucks, drones, houses, airplanes, and other arts using cardboard and empty cans.
Despite undergoing various treatments, including surgery at the Tamale Teaching Hospital, Frank’s condition did not improve, leading to the amputation of his right leg. This setback dashed his hopes of pursuing his dream of becoming an engineer, as he struggled to move with crutches.
For years, Frank remained at home without access to education until Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia read the ordeal of Frank and funded the process to provide him with a prosthetic leg, enabling him to return to school.
With the help of the prosthetic leg created by Simon, Frank, the determined 13-year-old student, is now back in school at the St. Francis Junior High School at Chamba in the Nanumba North District of the Northern Region, revitalizing his dream of becoming an engineer.
Frank Jilimah undergoing recovery with his prosthetic leg
Expressing his joy in an interview with DGN Online,web the writer accompanied him on his first day back to school, Frank shared his excitement about regaining the ability to walk and resume his education, stating, “I am happy that I can now walk and return to school to join my classmates and work towards achieving my dream of becoming an engineer in the future.”
Speaking to DGN Online, the Northern Regional President of the Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations, Abubakari Sahadatu Nimah, called on the government to implement deliberate policies focused on supporting persons with disability in self-employment enterprises such as financial, tax-free, and other support to enable them to expand their businesses so they can also employ some of their colleagues to also earn decent livelihoods.
“Our members who are always in the streets begging if they get employed or enrolled in any skills training it will create jobs for them and this can prevent a lot of them from going into the streets to beg to eat or feed their families.”
She commended the likes of Simon and other persons with disabilities who are mentors and motivation for other members that disability is not inability and urged them to keep working hard to change the narrative about persons with disabilities.
Persons with disabilities have been rejected and discriminated against in search of job opportunities by institutions and organisations due to their disability status even though Ghana has passed the Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715).
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) seeks to promote, protect, and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities, and to promote respect for their inherent dignity.
SDG
The Sustainable Development Goal 8, which Ghana has signed, aims to promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all including persons with disabilities.
Sustainable Development Goal 10 aims at reducing inequality within and among countries. This SDG calls for reducing inequalities in income as well as those based on age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion, or economic or other status within a country.
With his expertise in prosthetic limb manufacturing and dedication to empowering others, Simon has created a supportive community where individuals with disabilities can thrive. Through his innovative techniques, Simon is not only changing lives but also challenging societal perceptions of disability.
Simon’s story exemplifies the resilience and determination of people with disabilities. He is a source of motivation, showing how one individual’s journey can have a ripple effect on an entire community.
BY Eric Kombat