3. The Challenges
Page 7
Martin Luther King said, in 1963, "We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly."
Likewise, the Foundation's strategic plan cannot exist and be implemented in isolation from the New Zealand - or the global - context. It will be affected both directly and indirectly by such factors as government funding priorities, membership growth, and whatever crises and opportunities we cannot presently foresee.
The vision of the New Zealand Disability Strategy (April 2001) and that of the Foundation are aligned, that people with disabilities are supported to participate fully and independently in society. The framework of the disability strategy ensures that government departments consider disabled people before making decisions. Pathways to Inclusion (September 2001) aims to achieve a greater participation of disabled people in employment and our communities. The latter is a key goal of the Foundation's strategic plan.
The challenges we face in implementing the strategic plan are primarily financial. Government funding is increasing but still does not meet the costs of providing the Foundation's essential services. It is important for the Foundation to continue to emphasise the essential
Page 8
service nature of our business and encourage government to fully fund our services.
We rely heavily on voluntary giving to fund our services. Competition from other charities and, potentially, consumer organisations that provide some complementary services, will impact on the Foundation's ability to raise funds.
Along with an uncertain income, we can reasonably predict that demand for services from existing members will steadily increase. This will be accompanied by a new membership increase of nine to 16 percent in the next three years. Sixty-five percent of the Foundation's membership is aged 65 years and over. This age group will form an increasing proportion of our membership as New Zealand's population continues to age. It is anticipated that the number of members with diabetic retinopathy will increase due to the diabetes epidemic.
A factor affecting all workplaces and those people in education is new technologies. Technology will offer many benefits to Foundation members also. Adaptive technology increases access to information, and digital talking books are fast to produce and easy to listen to.
New technologies are, however, widening the gap between the have's and have not's. Members of working age are disproportionately represented in the unemployment figures. Many blind and vision-impaired children are also not reaching the same level of educational achievement as their sighted peers, which will disadvantage them in the workplace and in their lives.
These challenges are addressed in the strategic plan. It is up to us to rise and meet them, in the knowledge that none of us will reach our full potential until all of us do.