Nigeria recently signed the African Disability Protocol (ADP) – the first legally binding instrument to protect the rights of people with disabilities in Africa.

Development Diaries reports that Africa’s most populous country signed the ADP with the support of Sightsavers, an international non-governmental organisation (NGO).

To date, only five African countries – Angola, Burundi, Kenya, Mali and Rwanda – have ratified the ADP, while ten countries – Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Gabon, Malawi, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, South Africa and Togo – have signed but not ratified it.

Although the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) already guarantees all people with disabilities their human rights on an equal basis with others, many people with disabilities living in African countries, including Nigeria, face specific forms of discrimination.

For example, people with albinism in some African countries are at risk of being kidnapped, injured or murdered as their body parts are seen as having magical properties.

Also, there are widespread misconceptions that disability is a curse or punishment from God.

Figures from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) indicate that Nigeria is home to an estimated 32 million people with disabilities.

According to data from a 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey, seven percent of household members above the age of five (as well as nine percent of those who are 60 years of age or older) experience some difficulty in at least one functional domain.

This could be in seeing, hearing, communication, cognition, walking, or self-care. The survey also shows that one percent either have a lot of difficulties or cannot function at all in at least one domain.

Despite the fact that PWDs are among the most vulnerable people in the country, they are the least beneficiaries of the various national social protection programmes in some Nigerian states.

So what does the signing of the ADP mean for Nigeria and Nigerians with disabilities?

‘This is a historic moment for Nigeria and for people with disabilities across Africa’, Executive Secretary, National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD), James Lalu, said in a statement to Development Diaries.

‘The signing of the African Disability Protocol demonstrates our commitment to promoting the rights of people with disabilities and ensuring that they are included and valued members of our society’.

Section 31 of the Discrimination Against Persons with Disability (Prohibition) Act 2018 mandates the NCPWD to prevent discrimination against PWDs, and to make every one of them have equal rights and opportunities like their counterparts with no disabilities.

For his part, the Sightsavers Country Director, Sunday Isiyaku, said the signing was a significant step towards creating a more inclusive Nigerian society where the rights of people with disabilities are respected and protected.

‘We look forward to working with the government and other partners to ensure that the protocol is fully implemented. We also hope this encourages more African governments to adopt the protocol’, he said.

The aforementioned law provides for the protection and provision of rights to PWDs across all areas in Nigeria.

But despite the existence of the law, PWDs in Nigeria are still being excluded from social, economic, and political spheres of life. This is mainly because many states have yet to domesticate the Act and there have been various barriers preventing its full enforcement in some states where it has been domesticated.

In as much as the signing of the ADP is commendable, what is the next step for Nigeria?

Development Diaries calls on the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, which is supervising the NCPWD, and other relevant agencies of the federal government to immediately ensure the ratification of ADP.

But that is not all. We also call on all state governments in Nigeria to make the inclusion and participation of citizens with disabilities in governance and development programmes a priority.

We also call on states that have domesticated the Discrimination Against Persons with Disability (Prohibition) Act, including Lagos, Plateau, Ondo and Anambra, to ensure its full enforcement.

Photo sources: Sigthsavers, Ngozi Osadebe