ECOWAS Now Has a Regional Action Plan for the Inclusion of People with Disabilities in West Africa for the 2022-2030 Period

The plan was validated by the ministers of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) responsible for the inclusion of people with disabilities at the end of their two-day hybrid meeting (both virtual and face-to-face), which ended on Thursday 6 June 2024 in Abuja, Nigeria.

They then recommended it to the regional organisation’s Council of Ministers for adoption and pledged to support and implement it in their respective countries.

Other recommendations made by the ministers include examining the creation of an ECOWAS Agency for the Inclusion of People with Disabilities, taking into account the economics of disability inclusion, encouraging the ECOWAS Commission to recruit people with disabilities, and increasing its support for the provision of support equipment to all ECOWAS Member States.

The ministers also urged their countries to step up their efforts to promote the inclusion of people with disabilities; to improve and adopt a standardised tool for collecting data on disability in the region; and to increase networking, the establishment of partnerships and the involvement of the private sector and other development partners in mobilising resources at national and regional level for the inclusion of people with disabilities.

They also committed to the ratification of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Africa, which is still considered to be very low in West Africa. To date, only one country on the entire African continent has signed and ratified the Protocol on Disability to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

It should be noted that it was in August 2021 that the ECOWAS Commission launched the regional study on the inclusion of disability in West Africa, in response to the need to take account of people with disabilities in the region.

The results of this study led to the development of a regional action plan for the inclusion of people with disabilities. This plan covers the period of 2022-2030 and aims to have a positive impact on the living conditions of people with disabilities by guaranteeing their rights and full participation in society. It covers three priority areas of action aimed at further strengthening the inclusion of people with disabilities in the ECOWAS region.

These actions relate to improving the inclusion of disability across all aspects of the work of the ECOWAS Commission; improving the legal and policy environment for the inclusion of people with disabilities; and strengthening regional partnerships to increase the mobilisation of resources for the inclusion of people with disabilities.

All the speakers at the ceremony expressed their satisfaction at the validation of this plan, considering that it represents a significant step forward for the rights of people with disabilities in the ECOWAS region.

The plan, they said, should encourage ECOWAS Member States to adopt and implement laws and policies that promote the inclusion of people with disabilities.

The ECOWAS Commissioner for Human Development and Social Affairs, Professor Fatou Sow Sarr, reiterated the regional organisation’s commitment to providing leadership and coordinating the necessary resources to support Member States in implementing the plan.

The Senior Special Adviser to the President of Nigeria on Special Needs and Equal Opportunities, Mohammed Abah Issa, presented participants with a plaque as part of the official launch, on 27 June 2024 in Abuja, of the ‘Beyond Disability’ project aimed at promoting the inclusion and accessibility of people with disabilities in Nigeria.