UN Human Rights Council
Annual high-level panel discussion on human rights mainstreaming
Theme: Harnessing multilateral efforts to embed, amplify and realize the rights of persons with disabilities, with a focus on full and effective participation and inclusion in society
Statement of the Republic of Lithuania, on behalf of Nordic-Baltic States
delivered by H.E. Ms. Monika Navickienė, Minister of Social Security and Labour of Lithuania
26 February 2024
Thank you, Mr. President,
I have the honor to speak on behalf of the Nordic-Baltic States – Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Norway, Sweden, and my own country, Lithuania.
As we approach the five-year mark since the United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy was set in motion, it is crucial to assess the progress and the challenges in its implementation. This Strategy provides a foundation for sustainable and transformative progress on disability inclusion across all UN pillars, it reaffirms that the realization of human rights of all persons with disabilities is an inalienable, integral and indivisible part of all human rights.
We appreciate the Strategy's twin-track approach, which integrates disability-inclusive measures across all policies while also providing specific initiatives for the empowerment of persons with disabilities. Ensuring the rights of persons with disabilities is key to our commitment to equality and non-discrimination in the Nordic-Baltic states. We focus on empowering persons with disabilities by improving disability assessment, enhancing their seamless integration into the open labour market, providing specific and targeted support and services. We seek to ensure that public information is easy to read and accessible to all, using sign language, Braille, and other alternative forms.
The Nordic-Baltic States remain committed to further improving disability inclusion within the UN system and beyond, especially in the context of our shared commitments under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Distinguished Panellists,
How can we ensure that the multiple crises we are facing do not hinder the implementation of the Strategy? How can we leverage multilateralism to ensure persons with disabilities enjoy the full spectrum of human rights within the UN framework?
I thank you