As many as 5,377 people with speech, hearing and deafblind disabilities in Cox’s Bazar have no institutional opportunity to learn sign language, leaving them facing various barriers to education and communication.
According to data from the Cox’s Bazar district social services office, the district has 3,475 people with speech disabilities, 1,666 with hearing disabilities and 236 with deafblind disabilities. However, the office does not maintain separate or specific lists for people with speech and hearing disabilities.
International Day of Sign Languages is being observed today, September 23, across the world. The day also marks the beginning of International Week of Deaf People. The World Federation of the Deaf was established on September 23, 1951, while the International Day of Sign Languages has been observed since 2018.
The theme of International Day of Sign Languages 2026 is ‘Declaring Deaf People’s Human Rights’. Bangladesh, however, observes Bangla Sign Language Day on February 7.
Mohammad Shahi Nawaz, deputy director of the Cox’s Bazar district social services office, said there was no school for learning sign language in Cox’s Bazar.
‘There are only seven schools for learning sign language across the country. Two of them are in Muradpur in Chattogram and Chandpur. These are the only two such schools in Chattogram division,’ he said.
He said people from Cox’s Bazar interested in learning sign language could travel to Chattogram or Chandpur for education and training. They could also pursue such opportunities in Dhaka, he added.
Shahi Nawaz said people with speech, hearing and deafblind disabilities were receiving disability education stipends and disability allowances. He said there was also a provision for loans at 5 per cent interest for people with disabilities.
‘Apart from these, there are no specific initiatives,’ he said.
Md. Masum, a speech- and hearing-impaired resident of Chakaria, told New Age that he was currently a third-year BSc honours student. Born with a disability, he cannot hear or speak. However, with his parents’ help, he learned to write and now communicates with others in writing.
He said he was not aware of any private organisation in Cox’s Bazar providing services or programmes related to sign language.
In a written statement, Masum said people with disabilities remained largely excluded from mainstream society. He alleged that they were not receiving adequate support from the government.
Zebun Nessa, head of the physics department at Cox’s Bazar City College, said effective government initiatives were needed to bring people with speech, hearing, speech-and-hearing and deafblind disabilities into the mainstream.
‘At the same time, affluent sections of society and private organisations also need to come forward,’ she said.
Those concerned have called for the establishment of a sign language school in Cox’s Bazar and the creation of training opportunities to ensure the rights, education and social participation of people with disabilities.
By Abdu Rashid Manik
Photo: Collected
