Moldova signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities three years ago, but did not yet ratify it. At a roundtable meeting on March 20, Minister of Labor, Social Protection and Family Valentina Buliga said the former government did not hurry to adopt a legislative and normative framework for the protection and social inclusion of the persons with special needs, Info-Prim Neo reports. “The Convention must be ratified urgently so that we could help these persons. Many NGOs working in the field share this opinion. More things could have been done during three years. At that time, I was an MP. We sent the law on the social protection of the persons with disabilities back to the Government as it had to be adjusted to the Convention, but nothing was done,” Valentina Buliga said. According to the minister, the strategy for the ratification of the Convention provides for the social inclusion of these persons and guarantees their rights to a salary, a workplace and education. “The disability should not be a barrier to integration into the society,” she said. Mariana Matfei, of the PR service of the Association “Motivatie” (“Motivation”), said the persons confined to wheelchairs, as she, move through the city with difficulty. There is no wheelchair access to many facilities. The persons with disabilities have limited access to information and education. “There is no law in our country obliging the employers to offer jobs to disabled persons,” Mariana Matfei said. Igor Meriacre, executive director of the Association, said the employment of the persons with disabilities would allow the authorities to save money on pensions and benefits paid to them. “These persons can and want to work so as to have a decent living,” he said. Moldova signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on March 30, 2007. There are about 170,000 disabled persons in Moldova, including 15,000 children. The number of such persons goes up.