The Youth Wing of the Ghana Society of the Physically Disabled (GSPD-YW) will begin its search for GH¢100,000 when it launches an educational support fund on Monday October 6 in Accra.

The fund forms part of the "Education for the Physically Disabled (EPD)" project, designed to provide scholarships for needy physically disabled students as well as to support those undergoing apprenticeships.

Unlike other funds, the EPD will not be discriminatory; it will not emphasise academic performance as a pre-requisite, Public Agenda gathered in an interview with Mr. Edmund Essel Asiedu, Public Relations Officer, GSPD-YW on Monday.

Mr. Essel Asiedu said, "Whether you are brilliant or not you can access the fund," adding, it is across board.

"At the end of the day we expect that everyone will be able to access the fund," he stated.

Nonetheless, he noted that special attention will be focused on females with physical disability to address imbalances.

The PRO also said, "It will cater for both formal education and informal training such as apprenticeship."

It is believed that most young people with physical disabilities come from poor homes. This prevents them from attending school to the highest level possible. Even those who want to undergo apprenticeship cannot afford leading eventually to their unemployment.

As a result, a substantial number of them become vulnerable and engage in several social vices; others beg on the street while the majority becomes dependent on family members and other members of society for their basic needs. The above are among the many difficulties the GSPD-YW hopes to overcome as it opens opportunities for education through the EPD.

Specifically, the objectives of the EPD fund are to: get better education up to the tertiary level; have better qualification for better jobs; undergo apprenticeship; prevent street begging; and improve living standards of the physically disabled youth.

Ms Christiana Nkrumah, Coordinator of the EPD programme, says the society will require a minimum of GH¢10,000 before disbursement will begin. The fund will depend on donations from philanthropists, religious bodies, corporate bodies, embassies and high commissions, NGOs, donor agencies, etc. for survival. Donations can be made by texting to the code 1443 on all networks. The network arrangement was first brokered with Kasapa. But Ms Nkrumah says individuals and groups can also walk into the GSPD offices and make cash donations.

It is expected that a management team, headed by a fund administrator, will be formed to manage the fund. On the larger scale, the EPD will probably have a governing board, members of which will consist of religious leaders, traditional leaders, legal and media practitioners.