The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and stakeholders in Nigeria’s disability sector have called for urgent action to address gaps in disability data, policy implementation, institutional coordination and financing.
The call was made in Abuja during a stakeholders’ consultation on the Disability Policy, Data and Institutional Landscape in Nigeria, organised to assess progress, identify gaps and develop practical recommendations for strengthening disability inclusion across the country.
The UNESCO Representative to Nigeria, Dr Isaias Barreto da Rosa, said disability inclusion should no longer be treated solely as a human rights or social welfare issue, but as a critical development concern.
He noted that barriers to education, employment, transportation and digital accessibility could limit human capital development, productivity, livelihoods and participation in society.
Barreto da Rosa stressed that disability inclusion must be incorporated into policies and programmes from the design stage rather than being treated as an afterthought.
“Data is visibility. Participation is legitimacy. And inclusion is everyone’s responsibility,” he said, stressing that reliable data was essential to understanding and addressing the challenges faced by persons with disabilities.
He said UNESCO’s Management of Social Transformations (MOST) programme could support Nigeria by strengthening the link between research, evidence and policymaking, adding that knowledge must inform policies that improve people’s lives.
The UNESCO representative urged government institutions, organisations of persons with disabilities, civil society, researchers, academia, development partners, the private sector and the media to contribute to the process, stressing that each stakeholder had a role to play in advancing inclusion.
Also speaking, the Chief of Section, SCS/SPI/Management and Social Trust Fund at UNESCO Headquarters, Khodéli Iraku, said UNESCO was supporting member states to understand and manage social transformations in ways that ensure that all sections of society benefit.
Iraku said the MOST programme promotes policy-relevant knowledge, futures literacy and foresight, stressing that social inclusion must be deliberately incorporated from the earliest stages of policy development, with the participation of those directly affected.
She particularly emphasised the principle of “nothing about us without us”, describing the meaningful participation of persons with disabilities as critical to the legitimacy and effectiveness of policies affecting them.
Meanwhile, a consultant on the project, Dr Adebayo Adeyemi, said the exercise would go beyond reviewing Nigeria’s disability laws to provide a comprehensive assessment of the country’s disability policy, data and institutional systems.
Adeyemi said the study would examine policy implementation, institutional mandates and coordination, financing, procurement, capacity, data systems and the participation of persons with disabilities.
He identified financing as a major area requiring stronger evidence, particularly how disability inclusion was reflected in government budgets, spending and procurement processes.
The consultant also raised concerns about capacity gaps within ministries, departments and agencies, noting that some institutions still approach disability from charity-based perspectives rather than the rights-based and social inclusion approaches reflected in contemporary disability legislation.
He said the study would assess the quality, accessibility, interoperability and usability of disability data, while also examining Nigeria’s compliance with international and regional commitments, including the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Sustainable Development Goals and the African Disability Protocol.
According to him, emerging issues such as climate change, gender and urban development would also be examined, with inclusive urban development identified as an area where the project could contribute to practical improvements in the lives of persons with disabilities.
Adeyemi said the exercise would ultimately identify priority reforms, clarify institutional responsibilities, examine financing and accountability mechanisms, and assess how disability policies were communicated and implemented across different levels of government.
He described the consultation as the beginning of a broader engagement with institutions and stakeholders, noting that further evidence would be gathered to strengthen disability inclusion in Nigeria.
The consultation is expected to move beyond identifying gaps to developing a clear, evidence-based pathway for action that strengthens institutional coordination, promotes meaningful participation of persons with disabilities and translates policy commitments into tangible outcomes.
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