Stakeholders review Situation Analysis Report on persons with disabilities in Zimbabwe
Disability stakeholders virtually met on 11 August 2021 to review the report on the situation analysis of persons with disabilities in Zimbabwe. Over 60 delegates including representatives of UN Agencies, United Nations Partnership on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNPRPD) project team, Government, Human Rights Commission and Organisations of Persons with Disabilities took part in the meeting.
Participants discussed the findings of the situation analysis and made some concrete recommendations for the consultancy firm to incorporate before the Report is finalised. Such recommendations include the need for Primson Consultancy to engage the umbrella body, the National Association of Societies for the Care of Handicapped (NASCOH) members for more information on the situation of persons with disabilities.
Guided by the UNPRPD Secretariat’s global Analysis Framework, the Zimbabwe situation analysis provides information on a broader perspective on the situation of persons with disabilities in Zimbabwe. It also provides a high-level analysis of the legislative and policy context regarding disability, budget allocation, and use of data and mainstreaming of disability across critical sectoral areas, assess inequality between persons with and without disabilities across a range of areas.
The meeting opened with a moment of silence to honour the late Senator Rejoice Timire who was a committed member of the UNPRPD Advisory Group and a National Disability Board member as well as advocate for women and girls with disabilities.
Speaking during the meeting, UN Resident Coordinator’s Office Gender and Disability Advisor, Magdeline Madibela, said the findings of the situation analysis would feed into the UNPRPD Round 4 proposal development processes. In her remarks, Zimbabwe National Commission for UNESCO, Ms. Margaret Chirapa underscored the importance of a multi-stakeholder approach in advancing disability rights.
The Directors from the two national umbrella Bodies- Henry Masaya from the Federation of Organisations of Disabled People in Zimbabwe (FODPZ) and Leonard Marange from NASCOH appreciated the Situation Analysis Report saying it contributes to knowledge production on persons with disabilities in Zimbabwe. They said the report would inform disability-inclusion initiatives that seek to advance the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the country.
The (UNPRPD) Zimbabwe project team, in partnership with the UN Resident Coordinators Office and Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Development -Department of Disability Affairs, commissioned Primson Management Consultancy Firm to undertake a Comprehensive Situation Analysis on Persons with Disabilities from December 2020-June 2021. The Consultancy Firm is expected to incorporate the recommendations made at the meeting before finalising the Report.