Why disability inclusion anyway? Six hundred and fifty million people in Asia and the Pacific have some form of disability. That is one sixth of the region’s population. This number is expected to rise over the coming decades due to factors including population ageing; chronic health conditions; road traffic injuries; natural disasters, and conflict.1 The fact that disability is often a consequence of other development issues — such as those listed above — makes it imperative to build an inclusive regional development dialogue, in which the voices of persons with disabilities are heard. From poverty reduction to gender equality; from social protection to disaster risk reduction, there are very few areas that cannot benefit from the perspective of persons with disabilities.
The slogan, “Nothing About Us Without Us” has become a popular byword for the importance of persons with disabilities acting as decision-makers over all aspects of their lives. Indeed, individuals with a diverse range of disabilities have been increasingly active in international decision-making processes in recent years. Advocates with disabilities were instrumental in formulating the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD, 2006), which itself affirms the right of individuals with disabilities to participate in decision-making processes. Meanwhile, an extremely wide range of disability-focused NGOs around the world have consultative status in the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).