Promoting inclusion and leadership of persons with disabilities in Humanitarian Response and DRR

15-17 May 09:00 - 18:00
Booth: 11, Expo Center Foyer (1st Floor)
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Organizer(s)
Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund Indonesia and the Philippines
Contact
Chrysant Kusumowardoyo (chrysant.lily@asbindonesia.org)
Participation:
Public
Primary floor language:
English
Interpretation:
No
Live Broadcast:
No
Accessible:
Yes
International Sign:
No
CART:
No
Remote Participation:
No

Disasters strike all, however persons with disabilities are often at disproportionate risk due to cognitive or physical limitations, unavailability of supportive infrastructure as well as marginalisation and stigma they are facing. For instance, the absence of accessible DRR information might impact their capacity to access potentially life-saving information or how inaccessible infrastructure could hinder persons with disabilities to evacuate to a safe location.

Article 11 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities stresses the need to “ensure the protection and safety of persons with disabilities in situations of risk”. In this context, the objectives of this proposal is to promote the active engagement and leadership of persons with disabilities in inclusive DRR and Humanitarian Response. And further, to showcase realisation of effective and efficient humanitarian actions and DRR through the application of inclusion standards.

One key component within ASB’s wider strategy is to build the capacities of local Disabled People’s Organisations (DPOs) to act as first responders in case of disaster. This includes the training of DPOs on key humanitarian standards such as SPHERE and Core Humanitarian Standards (CHS), the provision of training on rapid needs assessment as well as the provision of technical trainings e.g. in the field of WASH. In addition, ASB is familiarising its DPO partners with the humanitarian system, linking them with relevant humanitarian stakeholders and supporting their active engagement in key coordination mechanisms such as the cluster system. ASB’s engagement with DPO partners goes beyond training. ASB closely mentors its partners during the implementation of Humanitarian Response, supports the dissemination and exchange of learnings as well as promotes partner-led advocacy work in the field of inclusive DRR and Humanitarian Response.

The aforementioned approach has been applied in various disaster settings. Most recently ASB collaborated with five local DPOs following the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Sulawesi, Indonesia. ASB’s Emergency Response Team (ERT) trained and facilitated the direct involvement of persons with disabilities in the rapid needs assessment, identifying gaps in inclusion particularly in the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector. Subsequently DPO representatives were trained to lead the installation, operation and maintenance of SkyHydrant water filtration units.

The ASB's approach not only ensures that the specific needs of persons with disabilities and other at-risk groups are taken into account in the event of a disaster. In addition, it aims to ensure that these population groups themselves become key humanitarian actors, providing needs-based humanitarian aid in their communities in the event of a disaster and passing on their specific expertise in the inclusive implementation of measures to other humanitarian actors.