Our Site
PAVI welcomes all readers and subscribers and looks forward to your support in our various initiatives and activities, as we forge ahead to empower and enhance the lives of persons with visual impairment. You can assist the organization in its work through volunteerism; your financial contributions, referrals of persons who have lost sight, participation in our various activities or your consideration of membership status.
Adjustment-to-Blindness Services
Through this programme, PAVI seeks to enhance the opportunities and facilitate the achievement of independent-living for persons with visual impairment through the execution of community-based services. Services include training in communication skills, social skills, daily living skills, recreational skills and vocational guidance, which are provided by Adjustment- to blindness officers. (Persons who wish to access services must be legally blind).
Community Support Groups
PAVI’s Community Groups are devised to bring persons with visual impairment together every month to engage in peer counselling, educational, social and recreational activities, while grooming leadership. These groups also seek to encourage the interaction and participation of family members and friends. There are currently three active groups, one of which is in Curepe, another in Couva and the other in St. Patrick East.
Advocacy
A critical aspect of PAVI’s work is that of advocacy through lobbying for the rights of persons with visual impairment, i.e. the right to sight; the right to equal and inclusive services; the right to a livelihood and the right to a safe and secure environment.
On June 6th, 1998 the organization was successful in gaining Cabinet’s acceptance to make amendments to the voting Regulations. As a result of this amendment, persons with visual impairment can now exercise any of three options to cast their vote. At the Local Elections of 2001, for the first time, persons with visual impairment were allowed to vote secretly and independently.
Partnerships
Partnerships over the years have enabled the organization to undertake several projects for the development of persons with visual impairment and the prevention of blindness. Some of those ventures included: Republic Bank Limited, Community Development Fund, Early Intervention Programme, Nipping it in the Bud, Youth Training & Entrepreneurship Programme (YTEPP) See more>>
Awareness & Education
Through various media initiatives, PAVI has afforded the opportunity to provide awareness information to the general public using social and conventional media. Some of which include programmes on Talk City 91.1fm, Mended Studios Facebook page, Gayelle The Caribbean and for a period of four years 2011-2015 the broadcast of our calypso competition both on radio and television.
