Welcome to the United Nations
Mandate
The President of the United Nations General Assembly will organise, in accordance with A/RES/68/3 and A/RES/69/142, “a panel discussion to follow up on the status of and progress made towards the realization of the development goals for persons with disabilities in relation to the follow-up to the outcome of the high-level meeting on disability and development and to the principles of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities”.
Background
The commitment of the international community to promote the full and effective participation of persons with disabilities in society and in the development process is deeply rooted in the United Nations Charter and other international norms and standards relating to human rights and development. The global framework to advance the rights of persons with disabilities in development has been strengthened significantly over the past three decades with the adoption by the General Assembly of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2006, as well as earlier frameworks. In this context, the High-level Meeting on Disability and Development (HLMDD), at the level of Heads of State and Government, was convened in September 2013, under the theme “The way forward: a disability‑inclusive development agenda towards 2015 and beyond” to provide further guidance and to strengthen efforts of the international community to ensure accessibility for and inclusion of persons with disabilities in all aspects of development. Based on this commitment, a number of efforts have since been made to include persons with disabilities in global development frameworks.
This year, 2016, marks the first year of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The 2030 Agenda includes a number of targets for persons with disabilities, including in the areas of education, growth and employment, inequality, accessibility of human settlements, as well as data collection and monitoring of the SDGs. It also incorporates disability as a crosscutting issue to be addressed across all development goals. The 2030 Agenda reflects the commitment of the international community to promote the full and effective participation of persons with disabilities in all aspects of society and development. The new global agenda indicates that in order to achieve the internationally agreed development goals, persons with disabilities must be included in the operationalization of these commitments. Nonetheless, gaps and challenges persist in terms of translating international commitments and development policies to practice on the ground.
Panel discussion
The panel discussion will be interactive and involve different stakeholders, including UN representatives, civil society, academic institutions, the private sector and other relevant stakeholders. A summary of the discussions will be documented by the United Nations Secretariat and will be reflected in the Report of the Secretary-General to the 71st session of the General Assembly.
Objectives of the panel discussions
- Review existing institutional frameworks to mainstream the rights based approach to disability and advance the rights, perspectives and well-being of persons with disabilities in development efforts at international, national and local levels
- Discuss the way forward for operationalization and implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development under the guidance of the Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Resources
Resolutions:
GA resolution 68/3
GA resolution 69/142
SG Report: A/69/187
HMLDD web-page
CRPD web-page
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
SDGs and Disability web-page
#Envision 2030