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Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Disabled Persons) Convention, 1983 (No. 159) - Nigeria (RATIFICATION: 2010)

Other comments on C159

Observation

2023
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Articles 1–4 of the Convention. National policy. Promoting opportunities in the open labour market for persons with disabilities. The Committee notes with interest the adoption of the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act in 2018, as well as the adoption of the National Policy on Disability (NPD) in 2018. The Act prohibits discrimination on the ground of disability by any person or institution in any manner or circumstance (section 1(1)), and further provides that a person with a disability has the right to work on an equal basis with others, including the right to the opportunity to gain a living by work freely chosen or accepted in an open labour market (section 28(1)). It also provides that all employers of labour in public organizations shall, as much as possible, have persons with disabilities constituting at least five per cent of their employment (section 29), and encourages their participation in politics and public life (section 30(1)). The Act also establishes the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities, whose powers include: (i) the establishment and promotion of inclusive school, vocational and rehabilitation centres for the development of persons with disabilities (section 37(j)); (ii) liaising with the public and private sectors and other bodies to ensure that their peculiar interests are taken into consideration in every government policy, programme and activity (section 37(k)); and (iii) receiving complaints made by persons with disabilities with respect to the violation of their rights (section 37(n)). For its part, the NPD envisages the implementation of measures in the area of vocational guidance, such as providing vocational training programmes and facilities; vocational guidance and information about different occupation to enable persons with disabilities to make informed decisions when choosing an occupation according to their interests and abilities. The NDP further provides for the implementation of measures in the area of employment, including ensuring effective participation of persons with disabilities in the employment process; as well as identifying and eliminating employment barriers, including by ensuring reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. The Committee notes that, according to the World Health Organization, in 2018, about 29 million of the 195 million people were living with a disability. It observes that access to decent work for persons with disabilities is a critical issue that requires the attention and efforts of a wide range of stakeholders. The Committee notes that there are often significant barriers that prevent workers with disabilities from accessing decent job opportunities which include stigma and discrimination, lack of accommodation and support, and a lack of awareness and understanding about the capabilities and potential of workers with disabilities. These barriers need to be tackled by way of crafting and implementing inclusive policies and legal frameworks which do not only establish the principle of non-discrimination but also specific measures facilitating access to the open labour market such as requirements to make reasonable accommodation in the workplace, to actively recruit and hire persons with disabilities, to provide training and support, or to foster an inclusive work environment. In this context and taking into account the measures taken over the last reporting period, the Committee requests the Government to provide follow-up information on the manner in which the newly adopted legislation and the national policy have been implemented in practice, communicating relevant secondary legislation as well as copies of evaluation reports and court decisions concerning the application of the principles of the Convention. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on concrete measures implemented to promote the employment of persons with disabilities in the open labour market, notably in the case of women and girls with disabilities taking into account the physical and economic barriers they often face in gaining access to education and employment. Finally, it requests the Government to provide statistical information on the employment rate of persons with disabilities in the open labour market, disaggregated, as much as possible, by age and sex.

Article 5. Consultations. The Committee notes that, according to the NPD (2018), although there are no legal provisions expressly requiring representatives of persons with disabilities to participate in policy making and work with government institutions, organizations of persons with disabilities do participate in practice in the planning, implementation and evaluation of services and measures that affect the lives of persons with disabilities. This Policy further states that the Government provides financial, organizational, and logistical support to organizations of persons with disabilities. The Committee requests the Government to describe in detail the manner in which representative employers’ and workers’ organizations and organizations representing persons with disabilities are consulted in practice regarding the designing, implementation and evaluation of the vocational rehabilitation and employment policy for persons with disabilities and that of the NPD more generally. Furthermore, noting that the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act provides that the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities, which comprises in its membership persons with disabilities from each geopolitical zone, liaises with the public and private sectors and the government to ensure that all policies, programmes and activities address the needs of persons with disabilities, the Committee asks the Government to consider extending the mandate of this commission to also conduct consultations with the social partners on matters covered by the Convention.

Articles 7 and 8. Services accessible to persons with disabilities, including in rural and remote areas. According to the NPD, the Government has launched rehabilitation centres for vocational training of persons with disabilities and has adopted the Community Based Vocational Rehabilitation (CBVR), which includes vocational skills training at the community level. The Government further reports that it runs three vocational rehabilitation centres, namely: the Nigeria Farmcraft Centre for the Blind in Lagos; the School of Social Work in Enugu and Rehabilitation Centre in Gwarinpa FCT. The Committee notes that according to the 2020 World Bank report on Disability Inclusion in Nigeria, the government has established six rehabilitation and vocational centers to provide training to persons with disabilities, but most are in deplorable condition as a result of neglect by the authorities. The Committee notes from the Government’s 2021 report submitted to the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) that the Lagos state government: (i) inaugurated in 2016 the governing board of the Office for Disability Affairs, to manage a 25 billion Nigerian Naira Employment Trust Fund for persons with disabilities; (ii) in 2017, empowered over two thousand persons with disabilities with financial grants, assistive technologies and mobility aids, and funded 500 persons with disabilities with 100,000,000.00 Nigerian Naira each as start-up grants to establish businesses of their own; and (iii) in 2018, employed 250 persons with disabilities in its public service. The NDP includes as part of its objectives to make necessary adaptations in existing public and private services and institutions which provides skills training in both urban and rural areas. Noting the indication in the Government’s report that, between 2019 and 2020, only some 48 persons with disabilities have received training, the Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information, including statistics, disaggregated by sex and region, on how the newly created vocational training centres have stepped up their activities with a view to providing a greater number of persons with disabilities with vocational rehabilitation and employment services to secure and retain lasting employment on the open labour market and to advance in employment, with a special emphasis on those in rural areas and remote communities.

Article 9. Training and availability of rehabilitation counsellors or other qualified staff. The Committee notes that the Government’s report only contains succinct information indicating that between 2019 and 2020, there were thirty-three qualified workers providing vocational guidance, vocational training, placement and employment of persons with disabilities. The Committee also notes that according to the 2020 World Bank report on Disability Inclusion in Nigeria, persons with disabilities are often limited in their choice of careers due to stigma and to the dearth of skilled professionals available to teach subjects, such as mathematics to visually impaired students. In view of the above, the Committee does not consider the offer of employment-related services available to persons with disabilities to be adequate considering its obligation to ensure training and availability of rehabilitation counsellors or other qualified staff for the vocational training and guidance as well as placement services to persons with disabilities. It therefore calls for efforts to be stepped up in this regard and asks the Government to supply further information as regards measures taken or envisaged with a view to improve the offer of services required by the Convention.