Tanzania marks International Day of Persons with Disabilities

By Xinhua Published: Dec 04, 2024 10:36 AM

Persons with disabilities play a wheelchair basketball game to mark the International Day of Persons with Disabilities in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on Dec. 2, 2024. (Photo: Xinhua)

Twenty-five persons with disabilities on Monday evening played a thrilling wheelchair basketball game in Tanzania's port city of Dar es Salaam as part of celebrations to mark the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, an international observance promoted by the United Nations.

The game, played by the members of Jakaya M. Kikwete Youth Park Wheelchair Basketball Club, attracted tens of hundreds of spectators as they watched the fast-paced sport starting at 6:12 p.m., local time, at the Jakaya M. Kikwete Youth Park, a non-profit, multi-sport facility named after former President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete.

Not long before the game started, the Inclusive Rehabilitation Solution Organization (IRSO), a local non-governmental organization, committed to enhancing the health, social inclusion, and economic empowerment of persons with disabilities, donated basketballs and jerseys.

Amedeus Lemunge, an IRSO project coordinator, said the donation was intended to motivate people with disabilities as they marked the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, which is observed annually on Dec. 3.

Leonard Marango, the coach of the club, said he trained the team from Monday through Saturday to motivate and refresh the minds of people with disabilities. "We organized this game ahead of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities so that they can be motivated and feel that they are part of humanity," said Marango, 64, a mechanical engineer.

Bernadetta Kinyelo, 38, a wheelchair basketballer, said she enjoyed playing the game because it gave her confidence and helped her stay in good form. "I started playing wheelchair basketball in 2019. Sport is about happiness and connects me to other people," said the mother of one child and a tricycle taxi driver.

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities promotes the rights and well-being of people with disabilities at every level of society and development. It raises awareness of their situation in all political, social, economic, and cultural aspects. This year's theme is "Amplifying the leadership of persons with disabilities for an inclusive and sustainable future."