D-Ability Initiative, with funds from the European Union, held a sensitization workshop to engage parents and partners of Deaf women and girls on the need for peaceful coexistence and support for the skill-building programme for Deaf women and girls. This event took place on the 8th of April 2022, at Emerald Hotels conference hall in Port Harcourt. 
The Objectives of the meeting were:
- To help parents and partners of Deaf women and girls understand the plight of deaf women and girls and the burden unemployment poses on them.
- To learn the importance of peaceful co-existence between them, Deaf women and girls, and other family members.
- To inform them of our intention to empower their Deaf women and girls through skill building and earning capacity in the tailoring / fashion industry.
- To itemize and share ideas on anticipated challenges that the training program might face, and to chart a way forward.
- To seek their collective buy-in into this life-changing opportunity for Deaf women and girls.
The President of D-Ability Initiative explained that there is a general challenge of unemployment and that parents and partners of Deaf women and girls needed to understand their plight and the burden unemployment poses. The President of D-Ability Initiative, Dr. Kingdom Nwanyanwu stressed the need for parents to live in peace with their Deaf women and girls in their various homes. He informed them that D-Ability Initiative is embarking on a European Union-funded project through the British Council’s Agents for Citizen-Driven Transformation (ACT) Programme, aimed at improving the livelihood outcome for Deaf women and Girls in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State Nigeria.
After an insightful engagement with parents and partners of beneficiaries, he proceeded to ask them how they usually communicate with their children and partners at home since they are not conversant with sign language. Mr. Salaudeen one of the parents of a beneficiary said he usually communicated based on the little understanding he had with his daughter at home, and that anything he finds difficult to communicate, he has to ask another of his child who has a better understanding to help him. Mr. Daniel a partner to one of the beneficiaries asked if the beneficiaries would be empowered with equipment after the training program. Dr. Nwanyanwu responded that the scope of the training for this first phase is for trainees to receive skills and knowledge and that in another phase there would be a hub where trainees would be able to practice and work while earning income and remain within that community for support. Finally, Dr. Kingdom Nwanyanwu pleaded with parents and partners of Deaf women and girls to support the project by encouraging their wards to take advantage of the life-changing opportunity.
