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Keep up with post-Global Disability Summit events!

A GDS Thematic Conference on Inclusive Employment and Livelihoods

  • 9 June 2022
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It has been almost four months since the Global Disability Summit (GDS). Since February 2022 the Global Disability Summit Secretariat has been working to organize post-GDS events, to connect stakeholders with interested constituencies, and to start the fundamental work of implementation and monitoring of commitments made during the Summit.

In the context of a four-day Learning and Exchange workshop on Access to Employment and Inclusive Programming - organized by the International Disability Alliance (IDA), Inclusive Futures, the African Disability Forum (ADF) and United Disabled People Kenya (UDPK) - the GDS Secretariat held a session to discuss the outcomes of GDS 2022, provide a preliminary analysis of commitments received, and exchange on commitments specific to inclusive employment and livelihoods. The session was organized with the support of three donors: Inclusive Futures, the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD) and the UK’s Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).

The event, held on 20 May 2022 in Nairobi, Kenya, was held in person and those who submitted commitments on employment and livelihoods were invited to attend remotely.

The objective of this particular session was to reflect on the importance of not considering the GDS two-day event as the culmination, but as the beginning of a journey, already looking at GDS2025. The point of holding regional consultations was to understand What considerations need to be taken into account and what needs must be met at the local level, to reach success from the global to local levels.

Through the two-hour event, participants, including representatives of organizations of persons with disabilities (OPDs), INGOs, and multilateral agencies, had the opportunity to:

  • learn about the immediate outcomes of the Summit and take stock of the scope and nature of commitments made in the area of employment;
  • listen to stakeholders who have submitted commitments and understand their intentions and preliminary plans for the implementation of these commitments; and
  • take part in a group activity to formulate recommendations related to the implementation of commitments.

The speakers who presented their commitments on employment and livelihoods included FCDO, UN Ghana, the International Labor Organization and UNICEF. The speakers focused on the process of formulation of commitments, preliminary plans for implementation, and, in the case of UN Ghana, the importance of cross-agency cooperation when reaching the implementation phase.

Through a group activity, participants elaborated concrete recommendations to governments, INGOs and employers on how they can engage with OPDs, both in the implementation of commitments and, more broadly, in taking inclusive action.

A report on the workshop will be available on IDA’s website, and four more thematic workshops are planned!

In the meantime, stay engaged through our website and social media.

You can read about the two-day workshop here.

You can also browse commitments by theme, region or keyword here.