IDDC

Members of the European Parliament Call for All European Funded Projects to be Accessible for Persons with Disabilities

Briefing on inclusive development in the European Parliament, Brussels 29 September 2009.

At a briefing in the European Parliament, MEPs committed themselves to using the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to reinforce the efforts of the EP to improve the situation of persons with disabilities in developing countries.

This briefing for new and more experienced MEPs, was the chance for an open discussion with IDDC members on inclusive development, while IDDC partners learnt more about what role the European Parliament can play in supporting the rights of people with disabilities.  

The briefing, co-hosted by Ádám Kósa, an MEP from Hungary and Thijs Berman, an MEP from the Netherlands was organised by IDDC at the start of this new parliamentary term to update the MEPs on disability and development and to develop strategies together for the coming five year parliamentary term. The two co-hosts called on their colleagues to become advocates for the rights of people with disabilities and several MEPs present committed themselves to ask the European Commission why most of the recommendations made in the European Parliamentary resolution on disability and development in 2006 had not been acted on. Michael Gahler MEP called the resolution 'the equivalent to the Parliaments action plan on disability and development'.

The briefing which includes concrete suggestions for action can be found here.

Representing the IDDC, Catherine Naughton from CBM spoke about the harsh realities of life for children with disabilities in developing countries when the right support systems are not in place to ensure their rights to access education, clean water, food and basic healthcare. The vicious circle of poverty and disability can be broken, but at present the EC is failing to show leadership in ensuring the inclusion of people with disabilities in its international cooperation.

"The European Parliament has an important role in scrutinising European budgets, laws and expenditure to ensure that people with disabilities benefit equally from them" said Celia Cranfield,  coordinator of the EU task group of IDDC. The European Community is due to become a party to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities this year and when that happens the EC and the 27 EU member states will have to work in parallel to ensure international cooperation is inclusive of people with disabilities. Thijs Berman insisted that the European Parliament must satisfy itself that the contracting procedures for all European development aid must ensure equal access for all to the outcomes of the aid. European taxpayers would be unhappy to learn that the EC is supporting structures abroad that will exclude people with disabilities for years to come.  

Roland Håkansson from IDDC member SHIA asked the MEPs to help support efforts in Sweden, which currently holds the rotating Presidency of the European Union, to bring the inclusion of people with disabilities in international cooperation onto the European policy agenda. The MEPs present also expressed an interest in this year's theme for International Day of Persons with Disabilities "Realizing the MDGs for All: Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities and Their Communities around the World”. They thought the EU should go to the 2010 Review Summit on the Millennium Development Goals asking for the inclusion of people with disabilities in the design, monitoring and implementation of efforts to achieve the MDGs.