Zambia has ratified the key international Conventions -United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) 2006, ILO Convention Concerning Vocational Rehabilitation and employment,1983 (No. 159), International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention Concerning Discrimination in Respect of Employment and Occupation ,1958 (No. 111), and has also tried to domesticate the same into various pieces of Legislation and Policies. The Government of Zambia has subsequently domesticated the international standards by putting in place a number of laws and policies pertaining to persons with disabilities, including their right to productive and decent work and to basic services, workers compensation, social security and entrepreneurships development.
The Zambian Constitution as amended in 2016 is progressive in that disability is mentioned explicitly in the anti-discrimination clause. One of the main elements of ensuring that disability related legislation is implemented is the establishment of disability focal point teams in Government Ministries/institutions.
To promote disability mainstreaming in all Government Ministries/institutions, the Zambia Agency for Persons with Disabilities (ZAPD) in collaboration with the International Labour Organisation(ILO) through the Government of Zambia – United Nations Joint Programme on Social Protection II (GRZ – UNJPSP II) rolled out a workshop for 27 nominated focal point persons drawn from different government ministries/institutions. The 5 day training held at Urban Hotel in Kabwe from 21st to 26th April, 2024, exposed the focal point persons to salient issues of disability mainstreaming. Although the overall responsibility for disability mainstreaming is recognized as an institutional responsibility and all staff and senior management are held accountable for the performance in this area, the disability focal point/team will act as a resource person/team on disability mainstreaming and a catalyst for promoting disability equality in the Ministries/institutions.
