By Muhammad Amaan
The Vulnerable People Support and Development Initiative (V-PeSDI) has formally submitted its Memorandum on Disability-Inclusive Governance and Development for consideration in the proposed 2027–2031 Campaign Blueprint to the Chairman of the AKY 2027 Campaign Blueprint Development Committee, Dr. Aminu Magashi Garba.
In a statement issued Monday, V-PeSDI Coordinator, Aftahana Dahiru Sarina, said during the visit, the group intensified its advocacy for inclusive governance and equitable development.
He said the engagement represents another significant step in V-PeSDI’s continued commitment to ensuring that persons with disabilities are not treated merely as beneficiaries of welfare interventions, but are recognised as rights-holders, equal citizens and active contributors to the social, economic and political development of Kano State.
The memorandum, titled “From Policy Recognition to Measurable Implementation: A Disability-Inclusive Kano State, 2027–2031,” was developed in response to the call for voluntary submission of memoranda and development ideas to the AKY 2027 Campaign Blueprint Development Committee.
The memorandum presents 15 core recommendations aimed at establishing a comprehensive disability-inclusive governance framework for Kano State. These include:
1. Fully operationalising and strengthening the Kano State Commission for Persons with Disabilities.
2. Institutionalising disability-inclusive and disability-responsive budgeting across MDAs and LGAs.
3. Establishing a State Disability Social Protection and Disability-Related Support Scheme.
4. Implementing an inclusive education framework from basic to tertiary and vocational levels.
5. Creating a disability-friendly health, rehabilitation and assistive technology programme.
6. Enforcing universal design and accessibility standards in public infrastructure and services.
7. Establishing a Disability Employment, Access-to-Work and Workplace Accommodation Programme.
8. Launching a Disability Enterprise, Skills, Procurement and Market-Access Programme.
9. Guaranteeing disability-inclusive political, civic and public participation.
10. Developing a State Disability Data and Evidence Management System.
11. Institutionalising disability-inclusive disaster risk reduction, humanitarian response and climate action.
12. Guaranteeing accessible information, communication and digital inclusion.
13. Strengthening disability-inclusive justice, complaints and protection mechanisms.
14. Establishing an annual Disability Inclusion Accountability and Performance Scorecard.
15. Introducing a mandatory “Disability Inclusion Test” for major policies, programmes, projects and public investments.
V-PeSDI emphasised that the major challenge facing disability inclusion is no longer simply the recognition of rights in legislation, but the persistent gap between legal provisions, policy commitments and measurable implementation.
The organisation therefore proposed practical accountability mechanisms, including a Disability Budget Tagging System, disability focal persons across MDAs and LGAs, statewide accessibility audits and certification, annual Disability Inclusion Scorecards, disability-disaggregated data systems, and a State Disability Inclusion Steering Committee.
The memorandum further calls for implementation across all 44 Local Government Areas of Kano State, with particular attention to rural and underserved communities.
V-PeSDI believes that a campaign blueprint provides an important opportunity to move disability inclusion from fragmented interventions towards a whole-of-government development strategy in which persons with disabilities participate meaningfully in policy formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.
V-PeSDI therefore calls for substantive participation of Organisations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs) in governance, budget processes, public hearings, development planning, disaster-risk reduction, climate action, infrastructure planning and other relevant decision-making platforms.
The organisation also advocates for accessible voter education, accessible political meetings, sign-language and braille materials, accessible public information and increased opportunities for qualified persons with disabilities to serve on relevant boards, committees and public institutions.
V-PeSDI respectfully urges the AKY 2027 Campaign Blueprint Development Committee to consider disability inclusion as a cross-cutting development priority and incorporate the 15 recommendations contained in the memorandum as measurable policy commitments for 2027–2031.
V-PeSDI maintains that the success of disability-inclusive governance should not be measured by the number of empowerment items distributed, but by whether barriers are removed, public services become accessible, livelihoods improve, participation increases, public spending becomes accountable, and persons with disabilities are able to exercise their rights and live with dignity.
The organisation appreciates the opportunity to contribute to the development of a policy framework that can place inclusion, equality and participation at the centre of Kano State’s development agenda.
V-PeSDI remains committed to working with government, political actors, civil society organizations, Organisations of Persons with Disabilities, development partners and other stakeholders to advance a more inclusive, accessible and equitable Kano State.
