Download for Incheon Strategy to "Make the Right Real"

Governments of the ESCAP region gathered in Incheon, Republic of Korea, from 29 October to 2 November 2012 to chart the course of the new Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities for the period 2013 to 2022. They were joined by representatives of civil society organizations, including organizations of and for persons with disabilities. Also in attendance were representatives of intergovernmental organizations, development cooperation agencies and the United Nations system.

The High-level Intergovernmental Meeting on the Final Review of the Implementation of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 2003–2012, was organized by ESCAP and hosted by the Government of the Republic of Korea. The Meeting marked the conclusion of the second Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 2003–2012, and launched the new Decade.

The Governments at the High-level Intergovernmental Meeting adopted the Ministerial Declaration on the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2013–2022, and the Incheon Strategy to “Make the Right Real” for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific.

The Incheon Strategy provides the Asian and Pacific region, and the world, with the first set of regionally agreed disability-inclusive development goals.

Developed over more than two years of consultations with governments and civil society stockholders, the Incheon Strategy comprises 10 goals, 27 targets and 62 indicators.

The Incheon Strategy builds on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Biwako Millennium Framework for Action and Biwako Plus Five towards an Inclusive, Barrier-free and Rights-based Society for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific.

The Incheon Strategy will enable the Asian and Pacific region to track progress towards improving the quality of life, and the fulfillment of the rights, of the region’s 650 million persons with disabilities, most of whom live in poverty. The ESCAP secretariat is mandated to report every three years until the end of the Decade in 2022, on progress in the implementation of the Ministerial Declaration and the Incheon Strategy.

• Aims to accelerate disability-inclusive development and CRPD ratification and implementation
• Derived from 20 years of experience : Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 1993-2002 and 2003-2012
• Time-bound and measurable Incheon goals and targets
• Based on CRPD principles
• Time-frame for achieving goals: Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2013-2022
• For a disability-inclusive Asia-Pacific, partnerships must be forged: Multi-sectoral, Multi-Stakeholder, Multi-level

The development of the Incheon Strategy to “Make the Right Real” for persons with disabilities in Asia and the Pacific was derived from the experiences in the implementation of two consecutive Asian and Pacific Decades of Disabled Persons, 1993–2002 and 2003–2012, as well as the historic adoption by the General Assembly, in 2006, of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

The development of the Incheon Strategy benefited from the contributions of governments, organizations of and for persons with disabilities, and other key stockholders. It drew from the observations, feedback and insights obtained through the following regional consultations: the Expert Group Meeting-cum-Stakeholder Consultation to Review the Implementation of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 2003–2012: The Biwako Millennium Framework for Action (Bangkok, 23–25 June 2010); the Committee on Social Development, second session (Bangkok, 19–21 October 2010); the Regional Stakeholder Consultation for the High-level Intergovernmental Meeting on the Final Review of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 2003–2012 (Bangkok, 14–16 December 2011); and the Regional Preparatory Meeting for the High-level Intergovernmental Meeting on the Final Review of the Implementation of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 2003–2012 (Bangkok, 14–16 March 2012).

The responses of governments and organizations of and for persons with disabilities to the ESCAP Disability Survey 2011–2012 on the final review of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 2003–2012, provided a rich evidence base for developing the Incheon Strategy.

• Respect for inherent dignity, individual autonomy, including the freedom to make one's choices, and independence of persons
• Non-discrimination
• Full and effective participation and inclusion in society
• Respect for difference and acceptance of persons with disabilities as part of human diversity and humanity
• Equality of opportunity
• Accessibility
• Equality between men and women
• Respect for the evolving capacities of children with disabilities and respect for the right of children with disabilities to preserve their identities