Partners: CBM International, Humanity& Inclusion and the International Disability Alliance

Project Overview

CBM International, Handicap International and the International Disability Alliance have partnered to propose a three-year project to promote inclusive humanitarian action for persons with disabilities. Leveraging the recently-launched Charter on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Humanitarian Action (“the Charter”), the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015), the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2015), the principles and rights enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) and expertise of the partnering organizations, the project will support knowledge growth and capacity building of all stakeholders engaged in the humanitarian field to promote the full inclusion and participation of persons with disabilities across all stages of humanitarian action.

Background on the Situation of Persons with Disabilities in Conflict, Crisis and Disaster

More than one billion people worldwide—approximately 15% of the global population—are persons with disabilities. Among the most marginalized in any crisis-affected community[1] and over-represented among those living in poverty[2], an estimated 9.7 million persons with disabilities are forcibly displaced as the result of persecution, conflict, violence and other human rights violations[3]. In some cases, morbidity of persons with disabilities in a disaster was estimated at a rate 4 times higher than those without disabilities[4].

Armed conflicts, emergency situations and natural disasters increase the number of barriers faced by persons with disabilities, impact their access to essential services and heighten the risks faced by persons with disabilities as they seek out assistance, support and protection. Seventy-five per cent of persons with disabilities living in emergency contexts reported lack of adequate access to essential basic services such as water, shelter or food. Where services exist, inaccessible communication strategies often exclude persons with disabilities from identifying and utilizing them[5]. In crisis situations, the same assistance common to all those affected is required, in addition to specific requirements related to disability.

The situation of the population in disaster, conflict and crisis situations is further exacerbated by the low level of priority given to persons with disabilities by the humanitarian community. Scant data, poor identification and registration and lack of provision of reasonable accommodation compound the exclusion of persons with disabilities in crisis needs-assessments[6] and response. Ninety-two per cent of humanitarian actors estimate that persons with disabilities are not properly taken into account during a response[7], a figure supported by studies that illustrate the low rate of funding (in some cases, approximately 1% of the budget) given to humanitarian projects inclusive of persons with disabilities[8].

Objectives of the Project
The overall goal of the project developed by CBM International, Handicap International and the International Disability Alliance is to achieve the full inclusion and participation of persons with disabilities in humanitarian action.

Anchored in the outcomes of the World Humanitarian Summit (WHS) and in line with the WHS Grand Bargain objectives, the project’s specific outcome is to take decisive action to support inclusive humanitarian response and foster the participation, inclusion and leadership of persons with disabilities in humanitarian action, in line with the UN CRPD and utilizing the Charter.

Guided by the Charter, launched during the World Humanitarian Summit (2016), and the UN CRPD, adopted in 2006, the three-year project takes a holistic approach combining advocacy, monitoring, and the development of and contribution to guidance and tools to better assess, design, implement and monitor humanitarian action. The partnering organizations recognize that this can only be achieved through the recognition of persons with disabilities and their representative organizations as both partners in and recipients of humanitarian action.

Initial Expected Outputs of the Project

  • Increased awareness of the principles of inclusive humanitarian action for persons with disabilities, guided by the Charter and in line with the UN CRPD.
  • International monitoring frameworks address recommendations towards inclusive humanitarian action for persons with disabilities.
  • A capacity building mechanism is established to foster cooperation, exchange and knowledge among DPOs, humanitarian actors and local stakeholders, contributing to inclusive humanitarian action for persons with disabilities.
  • CBM International, Handicap International and the International Disability Alliance have meaningfully contributed to and engaged in the development of the UN Inter-Agency Standing Committee Guidelines on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Humanitarian Action.

The project is funded by DFAT for a total budget of 1,353,000 AUD for 3 years.

[1] General Assembly, One Humanity: Shared Responsibility, Report of the Secretary-General for the World Humanitarian Summit A/70/90 (2 February 2016), available from undocs.org/A/70/709

[2] World Health Organization and the World Bank, World Report on Disability (2011) http://www.who.int/disabilities/world_report/2011/report.pdf

[3][3] Based on 65.3 million forcibly displaced persons in 2015, UNHCR Global Trends Forced Displacement in 2015 http://www.unhcr.org/statistics/unhcrstats/576408cd7/unhcr-global-trends-2015.html

[4]UN ESCAP, Overview of Natural Disasters and their Impacts in Asia and the Pacific 1970-2014 (2015) p.27 http://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/Technical%20paper-Overview%20of%20natural%20hazards%20and%20their%20impacts_final.pdf

[5] Handicap International, Disability in humanitarian contexts: Views from affected people and field organisations, (2015) http://www.un.org/disabilities/documents/WHS/Disability-in-humanitarian-contexts-HI.pdf.

[6] The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015 – 2030 (2015) http://www.unisdr.org/we/inform/publications/43291

[7] Handicap International, Disability in humanitarian contexts: Views from affected people and field organisations, (2015) http://www.un.org/disabilities/documents/WHS/Disability-in-humanitarian-contexts-HI.pdf.