The Continental Plan of Action for the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities 2010-2019 was developed by the African Union Commission Department of Social Affairs. It includes several key references to political participation of persons with disabilities.
Goal 2.4.2 Equal recognition before the law and access to justice priority actions include:
- To require political parties to have disability inclu-sive party policies and manifestos with a view to enhance political participation of the disabled
Goal 2.7.1.1 Self-representations includes:
- To develop and implement strategies for the effec-tive inclusion and efficient participation of mem-bers with disabilities in parliaments or national assemblies, and at provincial, district and local gov-ernment levels;
- To engage in advocacy, training, and awareness raising that helps motivate youth with disabilities to participate in the political process and share their experiences with other members of the community;
- To strive to include at least one disabled member, with consideration of gender equality, in their rep-resentation of five members per Member State to the Pan-African Parliament;
- To train MPs and build their capacity, knowledge and skills for effectively articulating and engag-ing in disability issues, including through direct collaboration with DPOs;
- To promote and encourage the development, by all political parties, of party policies and manifestos relating to equalization of opportunities for PWDs, including those of disabled youth, women, children, and other marginalized groups;
- To advocate for changes of electoral laws to be inclusive of the needs of PWDs;
- To ensure that all stages of elections are inclusive and accessible for PWDs, including the campaigning, elections observation and polling stages;
- To create opportunities for PWDs to contest and act as election monitors;
- To ensure that PWDs effectively and fully participate in political and public life on an equal basis with others directly or through freely elected representatives;
- To implement affirmative action measures to guarantee participation of PWDs in political and public life;
- To train and build capacity of PWDs to participate in and conduct public affairs;
- To enact laws that guarantee the rights of PWDs to participate in political process and electoral systems;
- To ensure the full participation and inclusion of PWDs in all aspects of the pre-election, election and post-election processes.
