Interregional Consultative Expert Meeting
on disability-sensitive policy design and evaluation
for sustainable livelihoods for all in the twenty-first century

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Background to the Meeting

1. Mandates for the Interregional Consultative Meeting

It may be recalled that at the Millennium Summit, held at the United Nations in September 2000, heads of State and Government committed themselves to "making the right to development a reality for everyone." [1]

With the adoption of the World Program of Action concerning Disabled Persons [2] and the "Standard Rules for the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities" [3] the member States of the United Nations General signified that people with disabilities have the right to full participation in social life and development on the basis of equality.

Commitment Three of the "Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development" [4] commits member States to, "promoting the goal of full employment as a basic priority of our economic and social policies, and to enabling all men and women to attain secure and sustainable livelihoods through freely chosen productive employment and work". The "Programme of Action of the World Summit for Social Development," in its chapter 3, "Expansion of productive employment", section (d), calls for: "enhanced employment opportunities for groups with specific needs". [5]

The 1997 report of the Secretary-General on follow up to the World Summit for Social Development on the priority theme of "productive employment and sustainable livelihoods" notes that: "the range of employment opportunities needs to be widened. Much can be done by ensuring that regulations and public policy do not discriminate against persons with disabilities and by eliminating the negative stereotyping of persons with disabilities. To the extent possible, disabled persons should be encouraged and assisted to obtain employment in the 'open market' and when this is not practical, appropriate adjustment in the workplace to accommodate persons with disabilities, and alternate forms of employment should be emphasized". [6]

Universal and equitable access to basic social services for all is another of the priority goals to which Governments committed themselves in the "Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development," adopted at the World Summit for Social Development (Copenhagen, 1995). At its thirty-seventh session, in 1999, the United Nations Commission for Social Development concluded: [7] "universal access by all to social services is a central goal for social and economic development policies (paragraph 4);" and that, "systems for provision of social services must not exclude or discriminate against persons with disabilities. Delivery of social services to people with disabilities should ensure their functional independence for active participation (paragraph 18)".

The High-level segment of the Economic and Social Council session on integrated and coordinated implementation and follow-up of the major United Nations conferences and summits, in July 1998, concluded that: "Poverty eradication and improving the living conditions of people everywhere should be the overriding objective of the Council's efforts to ensure an integrated and coordinated follow-up to [global] conferences." [8]

Recent reports of the Secretary-General on implementation of the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons [9] have described activities of Governments to formulate and implement a range of national and regional-level disability policies, initiatives and actions to promote social and economic rights for their citizens with disabilities. However, a report of the Special Rapporteur on Disability of the Commission for Social Development has noted that development cooperation activities of the United Nations system have so far failed "to integrate disability measures in their mainstream activities" [10]. In his view this has contributed to the limited integration of disability issues in policies, plans and programmes at the local, national and regional levels. The Special Rapporteur suggests that there is a need to strengthen the substantive treatment and better integrate disability issues and people with disabilities into mainstream technical cooperation activities of the United Nations. He draws attention to the need to strengthen advisory services of the United Nations to support Governments on request concerning policy design, planning and evaluation for equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities.

The Interregional Consultative Meeting on Appropriate and cost effective disability-sensitive policy design and evaluation for sustainable livelihoods for all in the twenty-first century will provide the United Nations and its partner organizations with an up-to-date strategic assessment of current issues and trends related to sustainable livelihoods, social services and safety nets for persons with disabilities. It is expected that Meeting findings and recommendations will enhance the capacities of the United Nations to respond efficiently and effectively both to the recommendations of the Special Rapporteur and mandates of its member States.

In substantive terms the Meeting will seek to address the question posed by Ms. Barbara Harris-White in a consultant paper for the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (Geneva):

"A central issue in any policy debate on disability concerns the rationing of resources to disabled people within a system of public sector care. Public care competes for resources with other institutional contributors to the social and political order and ab initio convincing justifications that the social health of disabled people is a necessary precondition not only for economic growth but also for social welfare have to be provided." [11]

It may be recalled in this regard that commitments of the member States of the United Nations to foster social and economic inclusion of women and of marginalized social groups, which initially were justified on human rights grounds, have generated significant economic benefits for all. The potential of a commitment by the United Nations to foster the social and economic inclusion of persons with disabilities to achieve economic and social benefits on the basis of equality will be a principal concern of the interregional consultative expert meeting.

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Notes:

1  General Assembly resolution 55/2, para. 11 <http://www.un.org/millennium/>.

2  General Assembly document A/37/351/Add.1 and Add.1/Corr.1 <http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/diswpa00.htm>.

3  General Assembly Resolution 48/96 of 20 December 1993, annex; in particular Rule 5 -Accessibility, Rule 6 -Education, Rule 7 - Employment, Rule 8 - Income maintenance and social security, and Rule 21 - Technical and economic cooperation < http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/dissre00.htm >.

4  Report of the World Summit for Social Development, United Nations General Assembly document A/CONF.166/9 <http://www.un.org/documents/ga/conf166/aconf166-9.htm>.

5  Ibid.

6  United Nations Commission for Social Development document E/CN.5/1997/3, para. 18.

7  Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 1999, Supplement no. 6; Commission for Social Development, Report on the thirty-seventh session (9-16 February 2000), resolution 37/1, "Social services for all" (E/1999/26).

8  Economic and Social Council document E/1998/90.

9  United Nations General Assembly documents A/54/388 and Add.1, and A/56/169 <http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/disa54e0.htm ; and http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/disA56169e1.htm>

10  United Nations General Assembly document A/52/56, annex, para 135 <http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/dismsre0.htm>.

11  Barbara Harris-White, "The Political Economy of Disability and Development" (Geneva, United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, 1996).

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