Executive Summary:

Natural disasters and hazards disrupt the people’s ability to cope and recover, disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations who face heightened disaster risks and systemic inequalities. Persons with disabilities are among the most affected because they are treated as a single homogeneous group, failing to recognize that they require different support needs. Furthermore, significant gaps persist in ensuring the meaningful accessibility and involvement of persons with disabilities in disaster risk reduction and management. These gaps stem primarily from a lack of understanding of the intersecting vulnerabilities that expose persons with disabilities to discrimination and marginalization during disasters.

Given the substantial risks faced by persons with disabilities during disasters and emergencies, the State must guarantee their full participation, representation, and equal access to essential services and opportunities throughout all phases of disaster management, from preparedness and prevention to response, recovery and rehabilitation. The CHR urges national agencies, local government units, oversight bodies, and public institutions to mainstream disability inclusion in disaster management. This includes institutionalizing inclusive governance, enforcing legal frameworks, ensuring meaningful participation of persons with disabilities, improving accessibility, strengthening data systems, and securing dedicated budgets. These actions fulfil the State’s human rights obligations under domestic and international laws, ensuring that disaster risk reduction and management is equitable, rights-based, and inclusive of all persons with disabilities.