“This is not a favour you’re doing for us. This ought to have been done before”

“Finally, we as people with disabilities are on the global stage and we have been asked to be vision-makers.”

My name is Sharon and I am a passionate disability inclusion expert from Kenya.

The Second World Summit for Social Development took place at the start of November in Doha. With my fellow global youth champion, James, I had the opportunity to attend the summit and address global leaders about the importance of disability inclusion.

The World Social Summit was amazing. It was a really eye-opening opportunity for me and I loved everything about it. The main agenda of the summit was inclusion and not leaving people with disabilities behind. We had the opportunity to meet and network with different organisations that also champion inclusion, and we attended as many talks, presentations and meetings as possible.

We had the chance to meet and network with various ministers including representatives from Ireland, Liberia and Sierra Leone, Belgium and UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed.

Not only did we share our experiences, but we also learnt so much. We heard directly from governments about their focus on disability inclusion and how they are reaching the most marginalised and furthest behind first.

James also found the agenda engaging. He thought it was interesting to learn about what different organisations, ministers and governments from around the world felt and what they had to say on disability.

My message to global leaders

I want to thank the organisers of the World Social Summit. Finally, we as people with disabilities are on the global stage and have been asked to be vision-makers.

But I do have a message to our global leaders: in this era, we shouldn’t only be speaking about physical accessibility issues. Disability is diverse! We are tired of being on the menu as talking points and it is high time that governments, decision-makers and global leaders act. This is not a request. This is not a favour that you’re doing for us. This is something that ought to have been done before.

I have hope that the political declaration, one of the outcome documents of the World Social Summit, will help guide governments in their plans towards disability-inclusive policies and laws, and that we, as people with disabilities, will continue to have our voices heard.