The World Bank must take a stand on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities to become a leader in inclusive international development said the Disability and World Bank Safeguards Campaign, a partnership between the Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union and the Bank Information Center.
For Immediate Release
International Day of Persons with Disabilities
World Bank: Become a Leader on Disability Rights
(Washington, DC, December 3, 2012) – The World Bank must take a stand on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities to become a leader in inclusive international development said the Disability and World Bank Safeguards Campaign, a partnership between the Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union and the Bank Information Center.
Disability and poverty are inextricably linked. Disability affects approximately one billion people around the world, a large majority of whom live in developing countries but have been systematically left out of development programs and policies.
“The exclusion of people with disabilities from development hinders their right and subsequent opportunities to benefit from national programs, including poverty reduction projects,” said Rachel Burton, Disability and World Bank Safeguards Campaign Program Associate from the Bank Information Center. “People with disabilities must be included in development programs, and the World Bank plays a pivotal role in ensuring inclusive development around the world.”
The World Bank’s Environmental and Social Safeguard Policies are designed to mitigate social and environmental risks associated with World Bank investments. But, as they stand now, the rights of people with disabilities, mainstreaming, and inclusive development have not been addressed in these policies. As a result, people with disabilities, often some of the poorest and most vulnerable people in countries where the World Bank has its projects, are not systematically consulted or considered in the planning and design of projects.
“The World Bank must take the lead in inclusive international development by mandating systematic inclusion of disability into World Bank operations, ensuring that all relevant Bank-funded projects are inclusive in design and implementation, and ensuring strong, clear policy language on disability mainstreaming and inclusive development in the safeguards,” said Mohammed Loutfy, Disability and World Bank Safeguards Campaign Coordinator from the Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union.
Background on the Campaign:
The Bank Information Center (BIC) and the Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union (LPHU) have come together to form the Disability and World Bank Safeguards Campaign. The goal of the Campaign is to ensure that the World Bank adopts a systematically inclusive approach to its engagement in developing countries. The Campaign’s first step toward this goal is to work with other civil-society organizations and Disabled People’s Organizations to ensure that the Bank follows an inclusive, participatory process in the review of its Environmental and Social Safeguards ultimately leading to strong, clear policy language on disability mainstreaming and inclusive development.
For more information on the Disability and World Bank Safeguards Campaign, please visit: www.bicusa.org/disability
For more information, please contact:
Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union, Mohammed Loutfy, +1 202-492-3045 or worldbankdisabilitysafeguard@gmail.com
Bank Information Center, Rachel Burton, +1 202-624-0637 or rburton@bicusa.org
###