To celebrate the International Day of Persons with Disabilities in 2025, the leaders of organisations of persons with disabilities and developmental organisations across Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Malawi exhibited unity of purpose speaking with one voice to affirm that now is the time to act on the African Disability Protocol (ADP).

The ADP entered into being on 7 June 2024, establishing a legally binding framework to protect and enhance the rights of over 80 million persons with disabilities across the continent. 

This milestone redirected responsibility from the continental level to individual national governments. The Protocol is now legally binding, and it is up to member states to ratify, adopt, and put it into action.

In a joint statement the leaders said across the three nations, they recognise that national policies and frameworks have made progress towards promoting disability inclusion. 

However, they said millions of persons with disabilities still face barriers that prevent them from fully exercising their rights. 

They called for the aligning of country efforts with the ADP is necessary for a full and enforceable approach to inclusion. 

For example, the Protocol requires access to quality education at all levels, with reasonable accommodations and assistive technologies. 

Yet today, countless children with disabilities in our countries remain out of school, not due to inability but because systems are designed without them in mind.

Read full statement below:

To mark the International Day of Persons with Disabilities in 2025, we – leaders of organisations of persons with disabilities and development organisations across Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Malawi – spoke with one voice to affirm that now is the time to act on the African Disability Protocol (ADP).

The ADP entered into force on 7 June 2024, establishing a legally binding framework to protect and promote the rights of over 80 million persons with disabilities across our continent. 

This milestone shifted responsibility from the continental level to individual national governments. The Protocol is now legally binding, and it is up to member states to ratify, adopt, and put it into action.

Across our three nations, we recognise that national policies and frameworks have made progress towards promoting disability inclusion. However, millions of persons with disabilities still face barriers that prevent them from fully exercising their rights.

 Aligning country efforts with the ADP is necessary for a full and enforceable approach to inclusion. For example, the Protocol requires access to quality education at all levels, with reasonable accommodations and assistive technologies. 

Yet today, countless children with disabilities in our countries remain out of school, not due to inability but because systems are designed without them in mind.

The ADP calls to eliminate discrimination in employment and promote entrepreneurship for persons with disabilities. As it stands, unemployment rates among persons with disabilities remain high in parts of our region, perpetuating cycles of poverty and dependency that the Protocol could break. The Protocol guarantees the right to vote, contest for office, and participate in public affairs on an equal basis. Too many persons with disabilities in our countries remain excluded: their voices absent from decisions that affect their lives. These are not aspirations. They represent the difference between exclusion and inclusion, between poverty and productivity, between invisibility and citizenship.

Where things stand

In Zambia, years of advocacy have built momentum. The launch of the National Policy on Persons with Disabilities and Mainstreaming Guidelines in 2025 shows the government’s commitment to inclusion. However, without ratifying the ADP and submitting the required documents to the African Union, these efforts remain disconnected from the continent’s legal framework. We call on the Government of Zambia to complete ratification of the ADP without further delay.

Malawi has ratified the ADP, but the critical next step is to make it enforceable into law. The estimated 1.7 million people aged five and above who have a disability in Malawi deserve to fully enjoy the rights enshrined in the Protocol. We urge the Government of Malawi to prioritise this process and allocate resources for implementation.

In Zimbabwe, we stand at a historic moment. With a new Disability Act enacted in the month of November 2025. We call on the government to establish strong implementation mechanisms that ensure the law translates into real change.

These are not only administrative steps; they are life-changing decisions for millions of persons with disabilities. Every day of delay means more barriers to education, jobs, healthcare, and participation in public life that could have been removed.

We also call upon the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Pan-African Parliament (PAP), and the African Union to exercise leadership in this critical moment. These regional bodies must:

• Actively support member states through the ratification, domestication, and implementation process

• Develop and fund disability inclusion programmes aligned with their own treaties and charters

• Lead by example by embedding disability inclusion within their own Secretariats, demonstrating commitment through accessible policies, meaningful representation of persons with disabilities in decision-making, and barrier-free operations

The human cost of delay

Behind every statistic is a person. A child denied education. A graduate unable to find work despite being qualified. A voter turned away from a polling station. A pregnant woman unable to access maternal care because the facilities are inaccessible. The ADP provides a clear roadmap to challenging these barriers. Political will must now match political rhetoric.

We represent millions of persons with disabilities whose potential remains untapped, whose voices remain largely unheard, and whose rights remain mostly unrealised. But we also represent resilience, expertise, and a vision of an inclusive Africa where no one is left behind.

Our task: To the governments of Zambia, Malawi, and Zimbabwe, to all partners, and stakeholders: ratifying and implementing the African Disability Protocol is not about doing people with disabilities a favour. It’s an investment in inclusive development that benefits everyone. It upholds constitutional promises of equality. It’s the right and smart thing to do.

Nothing About Us Without Us.

Signed by:

The RAD-P consortium

– Sightsavers
– Africa Disability Alliance (ADA)
– National Association of Societies for the Care of the Handicapped (NASCOH)
– Federation of Organizations of Disabled People in Zimbabwe (FODPZ)
– Zambia Federation of Disability Organisations (ZAFOD)
– Albinism Foundation of Zambia (AFZ)
– Federation of Disability Organizations in Malawi (FEDOMA)
– Disability HIV & AIDS Trust (DHAT)

and

U4ADP consortium

– Leonard Cheshire Disability Zimbabwe (LCDZ)
– Development Aid from People-to-People ( DAPP) Zimbabwe
– Development Aid from People-to-People (DAPP) Zambia
– Chesire Homes Society of Zambia
– Development Aid from People-to-People (DAPP) Malawi
– Human Rights of Women and Girls with Disabilities in Malawi (WAG-Disability Rights)

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