17 states yet to adopt Disability Act – Report
A new report has shown that 17 out of 36 states in the country are yet to adopt the Disability Act as law.
The report was carried out by Agora Policy, a Nigerian think tank and non-profit organisation committed to finding practical solutions to urgent national challenges.
The organisation conducts policy research, facilitates frank and purposeful dialogue, and builds capacity for governance, policy, and advocacy.
This was even as stakeholders called on the government to address the disability data gaps and discrimination against People With Disabilities.
The Agora Policy report obtained by our correspondent stressed the need for the Federal Government to tackle these issues in Nigeria.
It noted, “The Disability Act has only been adopted in 19 out of the 36 states in Nigeria and, therefore, has the force of law in only those 19 states.”
The states that had domesticated the Act are Lagos, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Plateau, Bauchi, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Sokoto, Zamfara, Abia, Anambra, Cross River, Edo, Ekiti, Ondo, Oyo, and Enugu.
The report lamented that the PWDs in the remaining 17 states are without legal protection from discrimination.
Last year, the Centre for Citizens with Disabilities demanded that Nigerian states yet to domesticate the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act should do so, four years after the law was passed at the national level.
The Executive Director of CCD, David Anyaele, said, “We are calling on Akwa Ibom, Adamawa, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Delta, Ebonyi, Imo, Ogun, Osun, Katsina, Kebbi, Gombe, Rivers, Taraba, and Yobe governments to demonstrate that the lives of persons with disabilities matter by adopting the National Disability Law.”
According to the Agora Policy report, PWDs faced a high level of discrimination due to the widespread practice of “ableism”, a social prejudice against them based on the belief that physical abilities were superior.
To foster greater inclusion of PWDs, the report proposed several recommendations, including addressing data gaps, sensitisation, and knowledge building, mobilising states to adopt the Disability Act, promoting its implementation, and collaborating with Organisations of Persons with Disabilities and Civil Society Organisations to develop an action plan.
It further detailed, “The National Bureau of Statistics and other critical stakeholders should address the data gap by ensuring robust disaggregation based on the number of PWDs per location, demographic distribution, type of disabilities, and specific needs.”
The report highlighted the need to promote the implementation of the Disability Act at all levels, noting that while the Act had several provisions to protect the rights of PWDs and imposed sanctions on offenders, cases of discrimination were rarely pursued.
