‘My vision is to train the blind in ICT’

Jolomi George Fenemigho is a blind mass communication graduate from the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Ogba, Lagos Nigeria, an assistive technology consultant, web designer and a strong advocate of accessible technology for the blind. Jolomi’s long term goal entails an inclusive society, where the utmost considerations for people living with blindness are met and delivered. He believes technology gives birth to competency for every blind or visually impaired person living in Nigeria which would in turn enable them match-up exponentially with their fellow sighted counterparts at work, at school and everywhere else. He shares his vision with NATHANIEL AKHIGBE in this interview. Excerpts:

I understand you are running an eye training centre. Kindly tell us more about the centre?

The Guiding Eyes Training Centre is an ICT training-oriented centre, intending to assist and support the blind and the visually-impaired persons in Nigeria in a professional and audience-focused manner. The centre emphasizes service and support to differentiate itself from more price-oriented centres. I am on the brink of penetrating the barriers of isolation that hold sway to our audience for years.

What are your objectives for the centre?

Our objectives include providing supportive services to the blind people in Nigeria; to create awareness on accessible technology for the blind and assist the public on how best they can make the environment conducive for people living with blindness in Nigeria; to train and retrain blind people to be technologically compliant. We also want to work in collaboration with the government, donor agencies, corporate bodies and foundations of like minds in order to advocate for an inclusive society.

But what can you tell us in terms of a particular area of focus?

The Guiding Eyes would focus mainly on accessible technology for the blind surrounding education and employment. I arrived at this conclusion from the research I carried out in order to prefer a lasting solution to the problem at hand, and focusing on these key areas mentioned above are what I feel will serve as probable solutions to the poor educational standard and incompetency surrounding the blind community in Nigeria. I realised that there are some already existing computer training centres that specifically cater for the blind in Nigeria today, but the so-called training that they offer, doesn’t go as far as the normal basic computer desktop appreciation, leaving the fact that there are so much more that ICT has to offer for a visually impaired person, such as: networking, IT trouble shooting, audio manipulation and creation, web designing, etc. Also, there isn’t much emphasis on ICT by this already existing institutions cause, their main focus is on other key areas affecting persons living with visually impairment, and totally ignoring the possibilities of accessible technology for the blind and the visually impaired persons in Nigeria. In addition, I believe that true assistive technology, I would not only make every visually impaired person an active and productive member of the society, but also make the sighted (people with sight) to end their discriminative attitude and cease from rating persons living with visual impairment as second-class citizens, but see them has equals and creating an inclusive society where high considerations for the blind are adopted in all facets in the country.

You are saying that you have something different to offer from what is currently available within the blind community?

Yes. The Guiding Eyes will offer services that are like no other as far as the blind community is concerned. We now live in a world where technology itself is changing (global village) and the way things are done now is not as it once used to be, and that is why The Guiding Eyes refuse to cling to the obsolete method of training (the common and basic computer training), that some already established institutions for and off the blind offer. Instead, The Guiding Eyes will offer an advance form of accessible computer training for the blind thus, having an edge over all other blind institutions in Nigeria.

So, what assistance would you need to be able to realise this dream?

For me to be able to realise this dream I need funding. I need to be able to get office space in a location the blind can easily access. I am trusting God for sponsors for me to be able to the needed equipment. If I have the needed financial supports, I should be able to impact the blind community and consequently contribute to national productivity.