The International Disability Alliance (IDA) and CBM Global took the occasion of the Busan World Disability Conference to meet in person and sign a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The MoU builds on a long history of collaboration and outlines a set of shared priorities that we believe will contribute to more effective development and humanitarian outcomes for persons with disabilities and Organizations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs).
The priorities include: advocating for inclusive development and humanitarian policy and practice, in areas such as improved and strengthened data for increased accountability, inclusive climate action, and support to OPDs monitoring compliance of states to the CRPD; collaboration on inclusive development and humanitarian advisory work to ensure that the growing demand for technical advice on inclusion is of good quality and aligned with the CRPD; and joint programs aimed at sharing knowledge and strengthening the capacities of persons with disabilities, OPDs and mainstream humanitarian and development actors.
Vladimir Cuk, IDA Executive Director, and Yannis Vardakastanis, IDA president, present at the signing said: “By signing the renewed memorandum, we are stepping into a new era of great partnership we have with CBM Global. As we are at the mid-point on the Agenda 2030, living in a post-COVID-19 world, where the humanitarian situations are keeping the stakeholders involved, conjoint global work that IDA and CBM Global do, will further enhance the lives of people with disabilities. We are certain that this renewed MoU will only bring our organizations closer and enable us to enhance the lives of people around the world by focusing on the global disability inclusion agenda, which is a goal that both IDA and CBM Global are committed to.”
David Bainbridge, CBM Global Executive Director, says: “Our partnership with the International Disability Alliance is foundational to our Federation strategy and our commitment to partnership with and accountability to the disability movement. Persons with disabilities and OPDs should lead in influencing the systemic change that is envisioned by the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). I am delighted that with this renewed MoU our partnership will deepen further.”
IDA is a network of eight global and six regional organizations of persons with disabilities, representing the estimated one billion persons with disabilities worldwide. Founded in 1999, IDA’s unique composition as a network of international disability rights organizations allows it to act as an authoritative and representative voice of persons with disabilities in the United Nations system, both in New York and Geneva.
CBM Global is a dual mandate organization, working both in development and humanitarian action. The organization seeks transformative change leading to improved quality of life for people with disabilities living in poverty, their families, and their communities.
