About Us
Services and Advocacy for People with Intellectual Disabilities (SAPID) Ghana is a non-profit and non-governmental organization passionate about the singular goal of engendering an inclusive society for persons with intellectual disabilities. We work to achieve this by providing services and advocating for their fundamental human rights. SAPID Ghana represents the voices of all persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and their parents/caregivers in Central Region of Ghana. Our mission is to reduce stigmatization by advocating for the rights and needs of individuals with Intellectual and Developmental disabilities and their families through education, training and recreation. The organization is working at achieving this goal through efforts to reduce stigmatization by means of advocacy, training, and education of the public, research, and skill development of PWIDs.
We are a member organization of Inclusion Ghana which is a part of the Disability umbrella in Ghana. ie. Ghana Federation of Disability Organizations (GFD) in which IG is well-integrated into the movement at the national level.
In essence, SAPID Ghana liaises with Central Regional GFD Officers at the individual district levels. We also collaborate with the Social Welfare Department, National Health Insurance Scheme and the metropolitan, municipal and district actors.
We operate in four districts in the central region of Ghana; Cape Coast Metropolis, Komenda Edina Eguafo Abirem Municipality, Abura Asebu Kwamankese districts and Mfantseman district. We hope to extend our operation to other districts and regions in the country. Our office is situated on the compound of Aboom School for Special Needs located at Aboom, Cape Coast; one of the 10 largest metropolis in Ghana approximately a two-and half hour drive from the capital, Accra. We operate a vocational training center adjacent Ewim hospital junction, Nkanfoa road, Cape Coast.
Our History
SAPID Ghana is an organization born out of necessity. The establishment became necessary in 2008 when the headmistress of Aboom School for Special Needs, Cape Coast in the person of Mrs. Mary P. Osei-Kuffo saw the need for her students to access the District Assembly's common fund; a pool of funds provided by the government of Ghana for people with disabilities. She took all the necessary steps to assist her students access these funds but a few challenges became obvious. Firstly, the intellectual disability segment of the disability group was omitted from receiving the funds. Secondly, the parents and Persons with Intellectual and Developmental
Disabilities (PWIDDs) were ignorant of the availability of such funds and finally, it was impossible for the headmistress to single handedly access the funds as she is not a legally incorporated charity or non-profit organization. She was advised to register the organization in order to present a formidable force that will enable her to assist the beneficiaries better. She went ahead and mobilized the parents and together with the students and assistance from Gloria Godfrey, a volunteer from Voluntary Services Organization (VSO), who was serving as a volunteer at the disability desk at the social welfare office in Cape Coast and her husband, David McCabbe, were able to register the organization with the Registrar General's Department in 2008. This made it easy for children and parents of PWIDs to access the funds due them. Awareness and other advocacy programs were undertaken to fight against stigmatization against the children. The organization evolved with time into what it is today, where we do full time advocacy for their rights to education and healthcare and fight for their inclusion in the larger society. We provide them with food items and take care of some of their basic needs for school. We train and equip them with economic skills and opportunities to gain employment in order to live independent lives.
Our Vision
To witness an inclusive system where people with intellectual disabilities are offered equal access to services and opportunities in Ghana.
Our Mission
Our mission is to reduce stigmatization by advocating for the rights and needs of individuals with Intellectual and Developmental disabilities and their families through education, training and recreation.
​
​
Core Values
Love
Extra care
Attention
Patience
Attitude of positivity
Acceptance: We accept varieties of individuals, thoughts, and ideas.
Our Success Story
As a voice for Persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (PWIDDs) and their families in Ghana, SAPID Ghana has been working very hard together with it’s key stakeholders, to make the voices of PWIDDs and their parents/caregivers be loudly heard in communities, districts, regions and in Ghana as a whole. SAPID Ghana has grown to become a strong force for change in communities and institutions through awareness creation, education and training, sensitization, advocacy, recreation and capacity building.
Over the years, SAPID Ghana has been able to sponsor students with intellectual and developmental disabilities to take part in sporting activities including Special Olympics games held annually in Ghana and also, sporting activities held in Los Angeles in the United States of America and Cairo, Egypt. The children performed tremendously and won some awards for themselves and their schools. Some of our beneficiaries have been able to attain employability skills in shop assisting, footwear repairing, vehicle loading and sewing. One PWIDD has been trained and employed by the Ghana Education Service as a house mother in a special school. Two PWIDDS are also self-employed and manages their personal small-scale businesses. We have had support with funds and have been able to put together
means of skill training in baking, sewing and beading for the training of students of Aboom School for Special Needs and for persons with intellectual disabilities in the Cape Coast metropolis. SAPID Ghana has also been able to build a two-unit classroom block for Aboom School for Special Needs. Our vocational training program support has aided Aboom School for Special Needs in winning an award for the Best Special Needs School in Ghana in 2021.
What We Believe
Potentials
We believe that there are great potentials in PWIDs. They are very great assets that when paid attention to, trained and invested in, will become great assets to themselves, their families, and the society at large.
​
Advocacy
We believe that when people know better they will do better. We, therefore, believe in advocating for and promoting the rights of persons with intellectual disabilities and their families.
​
Skill Development
We believe in developing the potentials of PWIDs through love, extra care, attention, patience, and an attitude of positivity.