Policy paper

ADD International

Published 23 July 2018

This was published under the 2016 to 2019 May Conservative government

Form for submitting commitments for the Global Disability Summit 2018

Your organisation

Type of organisation: Civil Society Organisation

Name of organisation: ADD International

Charter for Change

Please read the attached Summit Charter for Change: the principal legacy of the Summit. If your organisation is happy to sign up to the Charter, please confirm by putting a cross in the box below.

My organisation signs up to the Summit Charter for Change: X

Your organisation’s commitments to achieve the rights of people with disabilities in developing countries

A. Commitments to eliminate Stigma and Discrimination

Please select the category which your commitment most relates to: Policy, legislation and its implementation

Please enter the exact wording of the commitment/s, including details of others who has supported its development (75 words limit):

We will further our work with DPOs to support the development and implementation of policies which promote the rights and inclusion of all PWD.

Timeframe and/or implementation plan (75 words limit)

We will strengthen the capacity of DPOs to advocate for the adoption and implementation of policies to ensure accessibility for all types of disabilities. Through our policy and influencing work, we will seek to influence the practices of service providers, policy makers, academics, the private sector and civil society on accessibility to reflect national and international standards. We will also support DPOs to expand their role in implementing and monitoring of the Global Goals and the UNCPRD.

Please select the category which your commitment most relates to: Representation and empowerment of persons with disabilities

Please enter the exact wording of the commitment/s, including details of others who has supported its development (75 words limit):

ADD International commits to further strengthening the organisational capacity of over 100 DPOs in 5 countries of Africa and Asia so that they become sustainable and inclusive organisations that are effective in supporting PWD to access opportunities and in advocating for changes in attitudes, policy and practice.

Timeframe and/or implementation plan (75 words limit)

Our global programme will be delivered in partnership with DPOs and contain a strong focus on capacity building (CB). This will include provision of technical support, providing strategic inputs such as equipment; accompaniment in project design, delivery and MEL; strategy development; and brokering links with organisations, powerholders and funders. We will work closely with DPOs so that PWD can play an active role in legislative, planning and service delivery processes and hold powerholders accountable.

B. Commitments for Inclusive Education

Please select the category which your commitment most relates to: Capacity building: teachers and staff

Please enter the exact wording of the commitment/s, including details of others who have supported its development (75 words limit):

We will support persons with disabilities in Africa and Asia to engage with their communities and carry out awareness raising campaigns which dispel myths and challenge negative beliefs around disability and attitudes towards PWD, particularly the most marginalised. . Timeframe and/or implementation plan (75 words limit)

ADD will enhance DPO’s capacity to raise awareness of families and the community, particularly the most marginalised such as CWD, WAGWD and those with psychosocial disability and mental health issues. We will champion for inclusive policies that address challenges facing these groups. This will be complemented by our policy and influencing work, where we will use evidence and learning from our work on the ground to advocate for effective approaches in changing stereotypes, attitudes and behaviours.

Please select the category which your commitment most relates to: Policy, standards and regulations

Please enter the exact wording of the commitment/s, including details of others who have supported its development (75 words limit):

We will model the implementation of national strategies on inclusive education through pilot projects in primary and pre-primary schools, using the learning and evidence to make recommendations to local and national governments on how to implement policies effectively.

Timeframe and/or implementation plan (75 words limit)

We will work with our DPO partners to advocate for “what works” in the provision of inclusive education, engaging in planning and drafting of policies, dialogue and advocacy and budgeting processes.

Please select the category which your commitment most relates to: Additional resources and implementation

Please enter the exact wording of the commitment/s, including details of others who have supported its development (75 words limit):

ADD International will endeavour to advocate for and expand accessibility of educational facilities in 3 countries in Africa.

Timeframe and/or implementation plan (75 words limit)

We will work with DPOs to improve physical accessibility in schools, including access to school yards, WASH facilities and resource rooms. We will broker links with organisations providing assistive devices such as wheelchairs. Recognising the intrinsic link between poverty and education, we will link parents with government and NGO social protection, IGA and livelihoods programmes. We will continue to advocate for accessibility of educational facilities in line with best practices at relevant fora.

C. Commitments for Economic Empowerment

Please select the category which your commitment most relates to: Access to decent work

Please enter the exact wording of the commitment/s, including details of others who have supported its development (75 words limit):

We will support national governments, donors, multilaterals, development organisations, and private sectors in two countries where ADD International works in promoting greater economic inclusion of people with disabilities, particularly women with disabilities by creating awareness and assisting to develop strategies and programmes that expand employment opportunities, develop skills and entrepreneurship, and expand access to social protection for PWD in line with CRPD and SDGs by 2023.

Timeframe and/or implementation plan (75 words limit)

Economic empowerment will be a key focus area of ADD International’s global and country level policy and influencing strategies over the next 5 years. We will work in partnership with DPOs, allies and in consortia with other organisations to expand access to livelihood and development opportunities and social protection programmes for PWD in the countries in which we work.

D. Commitments for Women and Girls with Disabilities

Please enter the exact wording of the commitment/s, including details of others who have supported its development (75 words limit):

We will work with governmental and non-governmental actors tackling violence against women and girls to highlight the additional risks faced by WAGWD, and the additional barriers they face to accessing support and services. We will work in partnership with these actors to support the development of policies, support services and prevention programmes which are inclusive of WAGWD, and which are based on the voice and experience of WAGWD themselves.

Timeframe and/or implementation plan (75 words limit)

We will work closely with women-led disabled people’s organisations (DPOs) and disabled women’s networks to lead primary prevention interventions targeting WAGWD, including the most vulnerable. We will build the capacity of self-help groups, caregivers, other family members, their communities, and key duty bearers to challenge inequitable social norms that tolerate violence and to more effectively identify and prevent violence against women and girls with disabilities in their communities.

Please enter the exact wording of the commitment/s, including details of others who have supported its development (75 words limit):

We will work with our DPO partners to build their understanding of gender issues, and to introduce measures to be more inclusive of WAGWD, and to promote the voice and participation of WAGWD in the disability movement.

Timeframe and/or implementation plan (75 words limit)

We will build the capacity of our DPO partners on gender inclusion (assessment, training, accompaniment) over the next 3 years and establish and provide support to women-led organisations within the disability movement (women’s groups within mainstream DPOs/ Associations of Women with Disabilities).