Southern Africa Federation of the Disabled

Flagship Program 2: SA-IPLJ

Southern Africa Program on Inclusive Policies, Legislation and Justice (SA-IPLJ)

Exclusion and marginalization of persons with disabilities is an on-going challenge despite the existence of international conventions such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) which obliges member states to promote the equal rights to development of that segment of the population. The failure of many states to fully Integrate disability into their national development planning, programming, budgeting mechanisms is a development challenge that still needs to be fully addressed. On this basis, SAFOD believes that there is urgent need not only to ensure that all SADC countries have ratified the CRPD but also, and most significantly, that CRPD is well domesticated in the various statutes and pieces of legislations and polices of these countries and well enforced. 

This can only be achieved if there are deliberate programmes on the ground that aim to build the capacity of Persons with Disabilities and their Disability Peoples Organizations (DPOs), to effectively lobby for appropriate policies and legislation as well as monitor the enforcement and/or domestication of the CRPD. In order to effect change SAFOD seeks to advocate and influence policies through engagements and consultations with key stakeholders on policies, legislation and laws to ensure they are inclusive.

Priority Actions

1. Engage the SADC Member States and lobby SADC Parliamentary Forum on reviewing or development of disability policies and legislation at national level.

2. Engage and lobby for disability human rights frameworks in countries where frameworks are non-existent.

3. Increase the capacity of national affiliates to monitor compliance on policies and programmes and frameworks.