Secretary-General’s report on the implementation of the UN Disability Inclusion Strategy, 2022
As the world approaches the midpoint of the period of implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the acceleration of progress towards and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals are of the highest priority for the Organization. This includes fulfilling the rights and needs of more than 1.3 billion persons with disabilities worldwide, who continue to face persistent barriers to their full inclusion and meaningful participation in society. As we seek to realize the Goals, reaching the world’s most marginalized populations has never been more essential. Advancing disability inclusion across the United Nations system remains critical to support Member States in their implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and achievement of the Goals for persons with disabilities.
The accountability framework of the United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy provides the Organization with a clear road map to accelerate progress on disability inclusion. The present report demonstrates that, four years after its launch, the Strategy is reshaping areas in which the Organization previously faltered. Entities and country teams are addressing structural aspects of their programmes and operations, thus prompting a reassessment of their values, methods and priorities, including at the senior management level. The report details major trends, opportunities and practices across the system, and the positive impact of inter-agency collaboration in accelerating the Organization’s efforts to enhance disability inclusion in a variety of areas.
The results of the reporting are clear: system-wide progress will not be achieved if entities and country teams work independently of each other to implement the Strategy. We cannot wait for solutions to materialize. The foundational to ols, resources and guidance put in place as a result of the Strategy must be operationalized. It is imperative that, in the system, greater focus be placed on addressing disability inclusion in a systematic, coordinated and cross-functional manner, including at the highest levels of the Organization. Only then will the United Nations lead by example on disability inclusion.