The Disability Commission of the Canary Parliament deems it necessary to standardise the assessments and provisions outlined in the Dependency Law across the islands, noting that the level of compliance varies depending on the place of residence, as stated yesterday by its president, Ana Oramas.
After visiting several islands, Oramas highlighted during her visit to Gran Canaria that “we realise that the care, rights of people with disabilities, opportunities, and equality depend heavily on where one lives.”
Oramas stressed the need to “take steps in the remaining legislative period to equalise the provisions or assessments of disability, as well as rights to leisure, sport, and accessibility,” ensuring that “no matter where one lives, families should not have to relocate to receive the services and benefits they are entitled to as Canarians.”
In Gran Canaria, Oramas indicated they will meet with over 60 organisations to ensure “no family or third-sector organisation goes unheard.”
The aim, she stated, is to “cover all of the Canary Islands” to hear from the groups in a “direct” manner as part of a Commission addressing “Canarias’ unresolved issues regarding disability.” Commission members will spend two days on Gran Canaria “visiting centres and engaging with all organisations.”
Among the various needs identified, Oramas pointed out issues with “transport in Fuerteventura for groups to carry out activities due to the distances involved,” as well as care for patients with ALS in Lanzarote, early intervention in El Hierro, and assessments for children, which “in many cases force families to travel to Tenerife or wait up to three years for early education intervention.”
Additionally, she noted that in La Gomera, families must travel “twice a week to the south of Tenerife because there is no speech therapist on the island.”
Similarly, she highlighted “the challenges that all third-sector organisations face in hiring professionals due to the lack of a three or five-year social concert.”
At times, the president of the Disability Commission noted “parents themselves must endorse loans to advance payment for staff salaries.”
“Much to do”
Ana Oramas lamented that “this is the reality of the Canary Islands,” stressing that “regardless of the number of people with disabilities on an island, they must have the necessary provisions, no matter the cost.”
The Commission plans to conclude its active listening sessions across all islands by December to collaboratively “make proposals,” some of which are already included in the decree approved by Parliament, “with many more still to go.”
Meanwhile, the president of the Gran Canaria Cabildo, Antonio Morales, underscored the same idea, complementing the work the island’s corporation performs “closely with the third sector.”
According to Antonio Morales, it is “very important for the Canary Parliament to understand the reality of each island,” as each possesses “its own specificities.”
Thus, he welcomed the opportunity to engage in “shared reflections between different public administrations and institutions with the third sector,” at a time when “the welfare state and policies concerning care, social services, or public services that ensure social equity and justice for citizens are being questioned.”
In this regard, Morales emphasised the need to work on “expediting the disability declaration process” as “currently, the process is cumbersome and administratively slow and must be streamlined.” He also called for solutions for individuals over 21 years to guarantee continuity in their education. Furthermore, he echoed Ana Oramas’ comments, highlighting that there are services “that are paid late, complicating management and leading families to incur debt” to meet “the challenge of caring for those in need.”
Fair Prices or Disappearance
Morales advocates for “going further,” recalling that “we have yet to sign the dependency agreement in the Canary Islands,” and although “progress has been made,” it is a priority to ensure “the third sector receives the fair and necessary costs for the services provided.” Lastly, he warned that the lack of funding could “lead to the disappearance of many social organisations.”
