Rights, Equality, Citizenship, Solidarity and Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in West Africa (DECISIPH)

Rights in Action is a regional Making it Work project for West Africa.

It is part of a broader regional initiative called DECISIPH – which addresses the issues of rights, equality, citizenship, solidarity, and inclusion of people with disabilities across six countries in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo. 

Rights in Action was developed to “fuel” advocacy on disability rights and support capacity building of Disabled People’s Organizations in the region.

Rights in Action has a Regional Advisory Committee:

• Handicap International
• The Secretariat of the African Decade of People with Disabilities
• Action on Disability and Development
• CBM
• Municipal Development Partnership
• M. David Houssou – resource person for governance and local development
• ENDA Tiers Monde
• Women in Law and Development in Africa

The topic for the project is Inclusive Local Governance. This relates closely to Article 29 of the CRPD, concerning the inclusion of people with disabilities and their representative organizations in local mechanisms for governance, public consultation and decision-making.

The project report is complete and advocacy activities are now to being undertaken across the region. Thus far, a regional conference to present the report was held in Dakar, Senegal in November 2010. The project was also presented at a side event at the United Nations Conference of States Parties, September 2010: New York City. Click here

In 2012 and 2013 Rights in Action will launch two new Making it Work projects concerning people with disabilities’ rights in West Africa. One project will focus on equal access to vocational training and the other on equal access to water and sanitation.

Please check back regularly for updates…..