British Council seeks inclusion of women with disabilities in work, other places
29 March 2024 |
3:04 am
The British Council has underscored the importance of prioritising the rights of women with disabilities, as well as their inclusion and empowerment in every sphere of life.
British Council
The British Council has underscored the importance of prioritising the rights of women with disabilities, as well as their inclusion and empowerment in every sphere of life.
The council at an executive roundtable on diversity with the theme ‘Inspiring inclusion for Africa’s Super Women (People Living With Disabilities)’, emphasised the need for women with disabilities to be included in all spheres, especially in workplaces.
The roundtable in Lagos was aimed at fostering dialogue and action towards greater inclusion and empowerment of women, particularly those with disabilities, in the workplace.
Regional Head of Equality Diversity and Inclusion, Sub-Saharan Africa (EDI-SSA), Chika Idoko, in her keynote, lamented that women with disabilities often face double jeopardy of discrimination based on both their gender and disability.
This, she said, magnifies the barriers they encounter in accessing education, employment, healthcare and other fundamental rights.
She further lamented that women with disabilities were significantly less likely to be employed compared to their male counterparts and women without disabilities.
“According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), an estimated 80 million people in Africa are living with disabilities, with women accounting for a significant proportion of this population. Despite progress in recent years, women with disabilities continue to face multiple forms of discrimination and marginalisation. Some of these include employment disparities, accessibility obstacles, stigma and stereotypes, legal and policy gaps.
“The International Labour Organisation (ILO), in its report, noted that the employment rate for Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) in Africa is 1.1 per cent, with women comprising a disproportionately higher percentage of the unemployed,” she said.
Urging leaders and decision-makers to own up to the responsibility of harnessing this momentum and translate it into tangible action, she added: “We must commit to creating more inclusive workplaces that value diversity, embrace accessibility and promote the rights and dignity of all employees, including women with disabilities.”
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Cedar Seed Foundation, Lois Auta, said “Women with disabilities have a lot of barriers like infrastructure and attitudinal perception of the public, who see PWDs as third-class citizens and at zero per cent in everything.
Quoting Section 29 of the Disability Discriminating Act, Auta said: “All employers of labour in public organisations shall, as much as possible, have persons with disabilities constituting at least five per cent of their employment.”
She, therefore, said everyone should be carried along and included in all.
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