An agreement was signed between the Housing Authority and Aġenzija Support so that there is more work in favor of the independence of persons with disabilities. Through this agreement there will be more collaboration between the Housing Authority and Aġenzija Sapport and from which people with disabilities will benefit.
The Housing Authority will be helping people with disabilities who are looking for accommodation but cannot buy or rent in order to live independently. Aġenzija Sapport will be selecting prospective tenants after the necessary assessment is done and it is ensured that the prospective tenants can live independently or semi-independently. The housing lease in these cases will be determined according to the case of the disabled person.
The Minister for Social and Affordable Accommodation Roderick Galdes said that this agreement will be ensuring that there is more work between governmental entities, in this case between the Housing Authority and Aġenzija Sapport. The common goal of the agreement is to provide more help to people with disabilities so that we can continue to strengthen their participation in society and help them enjoy a better quality of life.
Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli stressed that this agreement will be helpful to continue to strengthen the inclusivity and independence of people with disabilities in our country. She added that through this agreement, between the Housing Authority and the Support Agency we will be starting to implement in practice the strategy of deinstitutionalisation of persons with disabilities. This means that disabled people who live in Aġenzija Sapport’s residential houses and who can live independently will be able to do so. Minister Farrugia Portelli said that the signing is in line with Article 19 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
The agreement was signed by the CEO of the Housing Authority Matthew Zerafa and by the CEO of Aġenzija Sapport Oliver Scicluna, and chaired by Minister Roderick Galdes and Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli. Present for the signing was the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry for Inclusion, Volunteering and Consumer Rights Nancy Caruana.
