The Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has called for the full implementation of the Disability Act passed 10 years ago.

According to CDD-Ghana, persons with disabilities (PWDs) in the country continue to have major challenges in accessing and making use of public infrastructure despite the passage of the law which was to ensure inclusiveness and equality for all.

“CDD-Ghana is disappointed that since the passage of the Act in 2006, and the ratification of the UN Convention on the Right of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in 2012, successive governments have flouted and/or disregarded the provisions of the law,” a statement issued by the organization in commemoration of this year’s International Day for PWDs stated.

“They have also failed to implement the UNCRPD which demands that government amends its existing laws to be in tune with the UNCRPD,” the document added.

The International Day for PWDs which was commemorated on Monday under the theme: “Empowering Persons with Disabilities and Ensuring Accessibility, Inclusiveness and Equality,” presented a great opportunity for government and its agencies to reflect on how well we have performed on the implementation of the Disability Act 2006 (Act 715) and the UNCRPD towards accessibility, inclusion and equality for PWDs.

The statement noted that although the Ghana Accessibility Standard for the Built environment (GASB) was launched in 2016 to provide specifications for the built environment in Ghana, its implementation is not being prioritized to ensure PWDs have dignity in using the country’s public infrastructure.

CDD-Ghana thus reminds government of the critical place inclusiveness resides within the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with its tagline “leaving no one behind”, which seeks to promote inclusive societies.

“The President of Ghana is the co-chair of the SDGs and has also signed on to the Open Government Partnership (OGP) which further promotes active citizen participation and inclusion. Ghana cannot achieve its developmental potential if sections of its people are excluded from contributing their quota due to failures of governments to take the necessary action,” the statement pointed out.

CDD-Ghana further called for the Amendment of the Disability Act to conform to the UNCRPD – a total compliance of Article 9 of the UNCRPD to ensure full accessibility to public transport and all public infrastructure and adequate resourcing of the National Disability Council, among others, to ensure an inclusive society.