Implementation of the World Programme of Action Concerning Disabled Persons :#towards a Society for All in the 21st Century

Encourages Governments, non-governmental organizations and the private sector, as appropriate, to take concrete measures to promote the implementation of relevant United Nations resolutions and agreed international standards concerning persons with disabilities, in particular the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities, and for the further equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities by focusing on accessibility, health, social services, including training and rehabilitation, safety nets, employment and sustainable livelihoods, in the design and implementation of strategies, policies and programmes to promote a more inclusive society;

Calls upon Governments to undertake all necessary measures to advance beyond the adoption of national plans for people with disabilities through, inter alia, the creation or reinforcement of arrangements for the promotion and awareness of disability issues and the allocation of sufficient resources for the full implementation of existing plans and initiatives, and emphasizes the importance of supporting national efforts through international cooperation in this regard;

Encourages Governments and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations to take practical actions, including public information campaigns, by, for and with persons with disabilities, with a view to increasing disability awareness and sensitivity to disability issues and to combating and overcoming discrimination against persons with disabilities and in order to further their full and effective participation in society;

Encourages Governments to continue their support to non-governmental organizations contributing to the fulfilment of the implementation of the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons;

Also encourages Governments to involve persons with disabilities in the formulation of strategies and plans aimed at eradicating poverty, promoting education and enhancing employment;

Urges relevant bodies and organizations of the United Nations system, including relevant human rights treaty bodies and the regional commissions, as well as intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations and institutions, to work closely with the programme on disability of the Division for Social Policy and Development of the Secretariat in the promotion of the rights of persons with disabilities, including activities at the field level, by sharing experiences, findings and recommendations on persons with disabilities;

Urges Governments to cooperate with the Statistics Division of the Secretariat in the continued development of global statistics and indicators on disability, and encourages them to avail themselves of the technical assistance of the Division to build national capacities for national data-collection systems, as needed;

Also urges Governments, in collaboration with the United Nations system, to give special attention to the rights, needs and well-being of children with disabilities and their families in the development of policies and programmes;

Encourages Governments, concerned non-governmental organizations and the private sector to continue to support the United Nations Voluntary Fund on Disability with a view to implementing fully the World Programme of Action and the Standard Rules, including the work of the Special Rapporteur, and to support activities to build national capacities, with emphasis on priorities identified in resolution 52/82;

Requests the Secretary-General to continue to support initiatives of relevant bodies and organizations of the United Nations system, as well as those of regional, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations and institutions, for the promotion of the human rights of persons with disabilities and the further implementation of the World Programme of Action and in their efforts to integrate persons with disabilities in technical cooperation activities, both as beneficiaries and as decision makers;

Also requests the Secretary-General to include, in his assessments of the implementation of the outcome of major United Nations conferences and summits to be considered at the forthcoming special sessions of the General Assembly, the contribution of these meetings to the promotion of the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities;

Requests the Secretary-General to submit to the General Assembly at its fifty-sixth session, through the Commission for Social Development at its thirty-ninth session, a report on the implementation of the present resolution.