2 December 2024 - Marking the International Day of Persons with Disabilities on Tuesday, UN Secretary General António Guterres emphasised the crucial need to increase the leadership of persons with disabilities in addressing global challenges, as essential to shaping technological advances and policy decisions.
“This year’s International Day...reminds us that we need the leadership of persons with disabilities more than ever,” Mr. Guterres said in his message, emphasising their crucial role as changemakers and leaders in communities worldwide.
‘Nothing about Us Without Us’
The day comes as countries recently adopted the Pact for the Future, committing to addressing long-standing inequalities faced by more than one billion persons with disabilities globally. The theme for 2024 – “Amplifying the leadership of persons with disabilities for an inclusive and sustainable future” – reinforces the disability rights movement’s core principle of “Nothing About Us Without Us”
Organisations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs) have been instrumental in driving community-led initiatives, advocating for universal access to basic services and inclusive development through data collection, consultation and accountability efforts.
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