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Is the world making progress towards equality for persons with disabilities?

The latest UN report reveals that achieving the Sustainable Development Goals is impossible without inclusion of persons with disabilities.

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) cannot be achieved without the full inclusion of persons with disabilities.

That’s the main message of the Disability and Development Report 2024 published on November 27 by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat – which builds on the first edition from 2018 United Nations 2018 flagship report on disability and development.

If this report underlines the impossibility to erase poverty, inequalities and protect the planet without supporting the rights of persons with disabilities, what is the reality? Where do we stand just six years ahead of the deadline of 2030?

Consistent endeavours have been made in the past years to close the gap between persons with disabilities and persons without disabilities. These efforts have led to notable progress in various areas, including eliminating discriminatory laws, adopting education laws on equal access, developing disaster early warnings in accessible formats, enhancing online services for persons with disabilities, improving the accessibility of government ministries or collecting data on persons with disabilities.

Nevertheless, the report reveals that despite undeniable progress, persons with disabilities remain often left behind in the efforts to achieve the SDGs. Progress has not been sufficient in about 30% of the targets of the SDGs. The gaps between persons with disabilities and persons without remain significant in areas such as poverty and inequalities reduction, well-being, gender-equality, food security, healthcare or employment. The reports notably stressed the lack of support for persons with disabilities during the covid-19 pandemic, notably at its early stage, increasing this gap.  Furthermore, the report identifies groups who are even more affected, such as women with disabilities, indigenous persons with disabilities, persons with intellectual or psychosocial disabilities and persons with disabilities living in rural areas.

The report includes recommendations for each SDG. It specifically calls for stronger commitments to integrating disability inclusion into national poverty reduction strategies or health strategies, ensuring accessibility, and involving persons with disabilities in the design and implementation of policies, while also evaluating the impact of public policies on their financial well-being.

Finally, another topic to highlight, which has received the most recommendations in this report, is the urgent need to strengthen resilience for persons with disabilities and mitigate their vulnerability to climate-related hazards and other disasters. The increasing frequency and intensity of events such as natural disasters pose a significant challenge, necessitating enhanced preparedness efforts that specifically account for the needs of persons with disabilities.

To sum up, this report is an incredible source of information providing a comprehensive picture of the state of play of the rights of persons with disabilities across the world and to identify where further actions are needed, making it also a powerful tool for advocacy.

Curious to know more?You can read the full report or its Executive summary.