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Guest Writers Written by LYNNE FEATHERSTONE http://www.observer.ug/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=28201:we-must-maintain-disability-momentum&catid=37:guest-writers&Itemid=66 We must maintain disability momentumIt is estimated that more than one billion people in the world live with some kind of disability – that is one in every seven people. For too long, the world has been guilty of turning a blind eye to the challenges, discrimination and prejudice that people with disabilities can face every day. Too often, they have been left behind when it comes to development. As a consequence, they are disproportionately some of the poorest and most marginalised people in the world. We simply cannot say we are tackling poverty if we aren’t addressing the needs of people with disabilities. Uganda is at the forefront of the disability movement in Africa and I particularly wanted to come here to get a picture of what works, and what the real challenges and opportunities are for making a difference in people’s lives. Over five million people in Uganda have a disability. That’s one in every six people. And poverty and disability in Uganda are impossible to disentangle. According to recent surveys, more than two thirds of people with disabilities in the Northern region of Uganda are living in a state of chronic poverty. Uganda was, of course, one of the first countries to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It has also been a frontrunner in making some incredibly important commitments to people with disabilities including: putting a reference to the rights of people with disabilities in the Constitution; recognising sign language as an official language; and setting out electoral processes to ensure that people with disabilities are represented from parliamentary to village levels. Uganda also has a very strong disability movement which is fundamental in driving many of the improvements in respecting the rights of people with disabilities. But there is some way to go in Uganda, as there is in the UK and other countries of the world, before we can say that all people with disabilities can live their lives with equal choices and opportunities and free from discrimination. You can often trace the challenges people with disabilities face back to school, where many people with disabilities, especially girls and women, simply find there are too many obstacles in their way to completing their studies. Without the necessary skills, they then struggle to get a job that would give them an income. Throughout their lives, many of them will encounter prejudice, ignorance and hostility, sometimes even from their communities and families. I’ve seen some brilliant examples here in Uganda of how services can be tailored to fit the particular needs of people with disabilities. I visited Wera primary school where a local partner of WaterAid Uganda has built a separate latrine for pupils with disabilities. This has made a big difference to pupils including one ten-year-old girl I met who cannot walk by herself and was subject to inconvenience and even bullying when she had to use the general latrine. She is now happier at school and socialising better. It is small actions like this that can make a real difference to a child staying in school. Of the 57 million children currently out of school in the world today, it’s no surprise that over a third have a disability. It’s not sufficient just to place these children in a school without considering their specific needs. That’s why last month I announced that the Department for International Development would ensure that all of the school construction we directly support is designed to allow disability access. We also committed more funding to the Disability Rights Fund – the only grant-making organisation solely and directly to support disabled people’s organisations in developing countries. These are only the first steps and we know we all need to do more. This is a global challenge and it needs a global response to tackle it. Many of you will have heard of the internationally-agreed Millennium Development Goals for tackling global poverty. The 2015 deadline for the MDGs is now fast-approaching and the international community is starting to shape a post-2015 development framework. This is a once-in-a-generation chance finally to put disability on the agenda and we cannot afford to let it go. Let’s keep the momentum building and keep working to fight discrimination. We all have a role to play – families, communities and leaders – in ensuring that no one is left behind and everyone has a chance to reach their potential. Lynne Featherstone is the minister responsible for disability in the UK Department for International Development.