Chair,
The Norwegian Government’s policy for people with disabilities is based on equality, self-determination, participation, involvement and inclusion.
The Government's work to promote equality for people with disabilities is based on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The Convention provides an important framework for ensuring equal rights and opportunities.
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a dramatic impact on our everyday lives for more than a year. People with disabilities have been hit particularly hard by the pandemic. Many people with disabilities have experienced a reduction in the services and assistance available to them.
The Norwegian Government has started work to draw up a strategy for the inclusion of people with disabilities in Norway’s development cooperation. The overall objective of the strategy is to help to achieve the SDGs through implementation of the principle that no one should be left behind.
Norway’s humanitarian policy and assistance target those who are most affected by crises. Protecting the rights of people with disabilities is an integral part of this approach.
Norway is proud to host the second Global Disability Summit, together with the International Disability Alliance. The summit will be virtual and will take place in February 2022. The Summit will mobilise efforts to:
· implement the Convention
· realise the principle of leaving no one behind
· build back better and more inclusively in the post COVID-19 recovery.
Thank you for your attention and I wish you every success with this important meeting.