The role of disability rights movements in the Ethiopian Development Agenda

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Despite the ever increasing number of persons with disabilities (PWDs) in Ethiopia and the resulting conditions of abject poverty, efforts made to curb the existing situation, thereby improving the lives and citizenry contributions of PWDs, has been minimal. Consequently, poverty and insufficient participation of PWDs continue to be the distinctive features characterizing the disability sector and movement in Ethiopia. This research was aimed at investigating the role, involvement and impact of PWDs and the Disability Rights Movement (DRM) in Ethiopia in realizing the effective inclusion of disability in the country‟s development agenda, with a specific focus on Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs).A qualitative research paradigm, using a case study design, was employed as a research method in this study. Data were collected using two data collection methods; namely, key informant interviews (KIIs) and focus group discussions (FGDs). Purposive sampling and snowballing techniques were used to select 44 people who participated in ten key informant interviews and three focus group discussions (each FGD attended by 8 to 10 participants). The researcher was flexible enough to conduct additional KIIs and FGDs until the data saturation point was reached. Semi-Structured Interview Guides were employed as data collection tools. A thematic content analysis was conducted following a systematic process of coding data and grouping codes into categories and emerging themes. The study was conducted in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, in collaboration with the Federation of Ethiopian National Associations for People with Disabilities (FENAPD) – the umbrella Disabled People Organization (DPO) in Ethiopia.The results of the study revealed that the disability movement in Ethiopia has not been active enough in ensuring the involvement of PWDs in the country‟s development endeavours. It was also reiterated that, even if the Ethiopian government was one of the first signatories of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), the practical recognition that it has so far conferred to disability and PWDs in its development plans has been less than satisfactory. The study also underlined the fact that some recent progresses, such as the mentioning of disability in the currently under-review third PRSP document of Ethiopia, should be strengthened in order to pave the way for a more comprehensive inclusion of disability. Imminent challenges and opportunities facing the Ethiopian disability movement have also been explored in the study. It is hoped that the results of this study will provide the pertinent disability stakeholders in Ethiopia, including the government, with useful, timely and concrete research evidence, especially as Ethiopia is now engaged in a process of launching its latest PRSP documents.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University