Ministry Statements & Speeches:
New Zealand would like to thank the Special Rapporteur for this very important and timely report. We welcome the report’s focus on the actions required to ensure persons with disabilities are meaningfully included as we continue to work towards the fulfilment of the SDGs by 2030.
It is concerning that with only six years to go until 2030, only five of the Sustainable Development Goals indicators are on track to achieve targets for persons with disabilities.
We echo the call in your report, that persons with disabilities must be heard and included more than ever to inform decisions in a real and meaningful way, to ensure concrete changes can be made to support relevant development goals and ultimately, to improve the lives of persons with disabilities, and ensure the full enjoyment of their human rights.
Your report sets out some areas of progress. For example, the coverage of laws and policies for education has improved. The report also sets out however that many gaps persist, especially in terms of food insecurity, health, poverty and employment, and access to information and communications technologies and energy. These gaps are wider for women with disabilities, Indigenous persons with disabilities, persons with intellectual or psychosocial disabilities and persons with disabilities living in rural areas.
New Zealand’s own Disability Strategy acknowledges the progress to be made in New Zealand and gaps to be filled - and therefore places a high priority on disabled people realising progress across a range of areas including: education; employment and economic security, health and well-being, accessibility, choice and control, and leadership.
The vision of the Strategy is a society where persons with disabilities have an equal opportunity to achieve their goals and aspirations, and that all of New Zealand works together to make this happen. Two principles that guide the strategy are alignment with the implementation goals of the CRPD, and ensuring disabled people are involved in decision-making that impacts them.
The commitment to leave no-one behind is therefore one which we seek to give effect to nationally, and is a commitment that we also strongly encourage internationally in order to meet our collective SDG targets.
We also want to acknowledge the important role of the United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy. New Zealand strongly supports continued progress to implement the Strategy and the system-wide efforts that are being made to advance disability inclusion and to ensure that the UN leads by example.
How can states more effectively collaborate to share best-practice on meaningful participation for persons with disabilities?
Thank you.