Keystone Moldova Meets with Special Advisor for International Disability Rights
The News
Keystone Moldova English and Keystone Moldova Romanian
Keystone Human Services (KHS) is a non-profit organization that is a part of a global movement to provide support and expertise to people with disabilities.
Special Advisor for International Disability Rights Sara Minkara visited Keystone Moldova during her mid-August visit to the Republic of Moldova. Within her role, Special Advisor Minkara is promoting inclusion for people with disabilities as a human rights-based issue. She champions building accessibility into policies and all aspects of society right from the start, benefiting all people. Her work aligns with our mission and values and the work we’ve been doing not just in Moldova over the past two decades, but also in the United States for fifty years and more recently in India.
On August 11, Dr. Ludmila Malcoci, Regional Director of Keystone Human Services International, Executive Director of Keystone Moldova, and Board member for Alianța Organizațiilor pentru Persoane cu Dizabilități din Republica Moldova (AOPD), participated in a Civil Society Roundtable discussion at the US Embassy in Moldova, focus on the inclusivity of society and the rights of people with disability.
Members of Keystone Moldova and Keystone Human Services International accompanied Special Advisor Minkara during her visit to one of the central government’s centers for refugees with disabilities in Chișinău. Because this building offers more accessibility, space was made for 60 people from Ukraine, including 15 people with disabilities.
On August 12, Special Advisor Minkara spent the morning with Keystone Moldova, visiting the Supported Living Service in Fălești. Supported Living is one of many services Keystone Moldova developed as part of inclusive systems change in Moldova, partnering with the Ministries, national and local public authorities, and national and local NGOs. Within the service, people with disabilities live within a typical home, receiving support with daily living activities and financial management, as well as support to find and maintain a job. The goal is for people to not just increase their independence but to become part of the community.
In fact, several people have left the service and now live on their own. They have jobs and families. “I have the right to live in the community,” said Marin Andronache. After he left the institution at age 18, he lived for three years in Supported Living.
“I then moved out into my own home,” said Andronache. “I got married and have a little girl. I also have a job.”
People thrive when they have opportunities to direct their own lives, exercise their rights, and fully participate in the community. Keystone Moldova takes a rights-based approach to create sustainable systems change, at the policy level, within civil society, and among the public.
We’re pleased to have this opportunity to share our work with Special Advisor Minkara as we work to make sure people with disability are included in all parts of society.
