The National Commission for Persons With Disabilities (NCPWD) on Thursday announced that it will initiate the full implementation of accessibility laws at public facilities and organisations in January 2024.
The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Mr. James David Lalu, while speaking on Thursday during a world press conference marking the 2023 International Day of Persons With Disabilities noted that the law mandates organisations and other business owners to make their facilities accessible to persons with disabilities in Nigeria and include them in their workforce.
He explained that the Commission had transitioned from the era of advocacy to the era of enforcement. He revealed that a task force would be constituted by the end of the year to ensure the full implementation of the law. Lalu asserted that the Commission had granted a five-year window for organisations to comply with the law, set to expire by January 16, 2024.
He said, “When you look at the provision of the discrimination against persons with disabilities prohibition, there is a lot in it. The disability community carefully selected them, and it has passed many years of struggle to where we are today. Having done that, the Commission has been established and invested with the full responsibility for the enforcement of the provisions of the Act.
“This, as stated in the law, is five years, and the five years are rounding off. We are now transitioning from the era of advocacy to an era of enforcement. The era of enforcement is here. By January, the commission is expected to move out in full force to make sure that the provisions of the law are properly implemented.
“The commission will start meeting with its partners and compose the task force immediately before this Christmas. Everything will be on the ground before the end of this year so that as we come early next year, the Task Force will be in full operation.
“January 16, 2024, will be the expiration date, and by the 17th of January, the Task Force team will move out and visit key offices to have a physical assessment of facilities. Our assessment may not only end on the physical facilities but the composition of the staff in these institutions.”
The Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018, became a law in 2019.
The law prohibits discrimination based on disability and imposes sanctions including fines and prison sentences on people who contravene its provisions.
According to the law, by January 16, 2024 – five years after its passage, “all public buildings or structures, whether immovable or not, must be modified and accessible to persons with disabilities including those on wheelchairs”.
On his part, the Chairman of the House Committee on Disability, Honourable Bashiru Dawodu, said people living with disabilities should be insured by the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) to take care of their coverage. He mentioned that the motion on sign language had already been moved in the National Assembly, particularly the House of Representatives.
“You can never have universal coverage if persons with disabilities are not insured. We also talk about awareness, which is one of the things we are doing here today.
“There is already a motion on sign language before the House, which I have to say has been implemented. In the chamber of the National Assembly now, especially in the House of Representatives, for the first time, we are going to have a sign language interpreter,” he added.
