Disability Inclusion Network

Global education is in crisis. Funding is shrinking, millions of children remain out of school, and learning outcomes are declining. Yet disability inclusion is still too often addressed separately from broader education reform.

This dialogue builds on the momentum of the 2025 Global Disability Summit and connects directly to IDA’s 2025–2030 Impact Strategy: scaling up inclusion, shifting systems, and guaranteeing organisations of persons with disabilities shape solutions from the start.

Disability inclusion must move from parallel initiatives to system-wide change in line with the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the commitment to leave no one behind.

International Disability Alliance
Disability Rights Fund
Disability Rights Advocacy Organization - DRAO

Global education is in crisis. Funding is shrinking, millions of children remain out of school, and learning outcomes are declining. Yet disability inclusion is still too often addressed separately from broader education reform.

This dialogue builds on the momentum of the 2025 Global Disability Summit and connects directly to IDA’s 2025–2030 Impact Strategy: scaling up inclusion, shifting systems, and guaranteeing organisations of persons with disabilities shape solutions from the start.

Together with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, we will share evidence and develop a roadmap to turn research into action.

Because disability inclusion must move from parallel initiatives to system-wide change in line with the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the commitment to leave no one behind.

Wilton Park

STOP CALLING ME RUDE-NICKNAMES: MY NAME IS JAAMAC — NOT JEERI (LIMPY) OR LUGEY (AMPUTEE)

In contemporary, rights-respecting societies, it is widely recognized that assigning nicknames based on negative physical traits is inappropriate and harmful. However, within Somali communities, the practice of labeling individuals—particularly persons with disabilities—according to visible physical characteristics remains deeply entrenched.

Such labeling practices contribute directly to social discrimination, stigmatization, psychological harm, and exclusion from community life. For persons with disabilities, these experiences reinforce long-standing barriers to dignity, participation, and equitable access to social, economic, and institutional services. Over time, the cumulative impact of these barriers diminishes personal aspirations and restricts opportunities for advancement.

From a modern human-rights perspective, disability is understood as an integral dimension of human diversity. It cannot, and should not, serve as a basis for social, cultural, or institutional disadvantage. A physical characteristic does not determine an individual’s capability or potential; rather, it reflects one element of human uniqueness.

The practice of using derogatory or dehumanizing nicknames to refer to persons with disabilities must be unequivocally rejected. Language shapes attitudes, and attitudes shape systems. Respect begins with acknowledging individuals by their proper names and affirming their inherent dignity.

Normalcy is not defined by the visibility or appearance of human body structures. Societies achieve strength and sustainable development only when all members have equitable access to social services, opportunities, and participation—free from prejudice and discrimination.

●End the use of stigmatizing nicknames.
●End the dehumanization of persons with disabilities.
●Promote dignity, respect, and inclusion.

Disability Rights Advocacy Organization - DRAO

By: Soane Badel

Celebrating International Day of Persons with Disabilities — 3 December 2025

Today, DRAO join the world in celebrating the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) under the theme: “Fostering disability-inclusive societies for advancing social progress.”

This year reminds us that genuine social development includes everyone. Persons with disabilities are not just beneficiaries — they are equal rights-holders, leaders, and agents of change.

We call on governments, communities, and all stakeholders to:
• Advance inclusive policies in education, employment, and social protection.
• Guarantee accessible public spaces, infrastructure, and digital platforms.
• Empower the voices and leadership of persons with disabilities in decision-making.
• Challenge stigma and discrimination, fostering dignity, equality, and solidarity.

Today, we celebrate the resilience, achievements, and leadership of persons with disabilities, while recognizing the barriers many continue to face.

At DRAO, we reaffirm our commitment to advocacy, partnerships, and inclusion — working toward a society where everyone can thrive.

Let’s build truly disability-inclusive societies — because when inclusion is real, everyone benefits.

In solidarity,