Kathmandu: Speaker of the House of Representatives (HoR) Devraj Ghimire has advocated for sensitivity towards disability issues and economic independence of persons with disabilities (PWD). Inaugurating a national youth conference related to disability on the occasion of the 33rd International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD), Speaker Ghimire emphasized that PWD should be economically empowered before addressing concerns of inclusiveness.
According to National News Agency Nepal, Speaker Ghimire highlighted the importance of addressing the basic needs of PWDs before enforcing inclusive policies. He remarked on the Constitution of Nepal’s prioritization of equality, inclusiveness, and rights of PWD, acknowledging weaknesses and lapses in implementing constitutional rights and legal provisions concerning disability.
Speaker Ghimire pledged to ensure equal participation of PWD at the policy-making level and stressed the need to amend the Election Act to enhance their participation in federal and provinci
al assemblies. He also called for strict enforcement of disability-related laws and accountability for those failing to implement them.
Similarly, National Federation of the Disabled-Nepal’s President Devi Dutta Acharya emphasized effective enforcement of the ‘disability inclusion’ provision in disaster-related laws and policies. The constitutional and legal framework of Nepal guarantees the rights of PWD, and the country has ratified the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability since 2009.
The Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens is working towards drafting action plans to implement the National Policy on Disability. According to the World Health Organization’s statistics, an estimated 1.3 billion people worldwide experience significant disability, representing 16 per cent of the global population. In Nepal, the National Statistics Office’s 2078 BS census recorded 647,744 people with some form of disability, constituting 2.2 per cent of the total population of 29,164,578
.