UN Officiallyvaluesthe Cambodian effort in the disability sector

Representatives of the disability working group of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) appreciate the Cambodian efforts in giving greater benefits, as well as improving the livelihood of persons with disabilities in the society.

In the meeting with His Excellency Em Chan Makara, Secretary General of Disability Action Council (DAC), on May 20, 2014, Mr. Velibor Popovic, the representative of the UNDP in Cambodia, congratulated and valued the noticeable improvement in the disability sector; especially the final achievement to adopt the National Disability Strategic Plan 2014-2018 (NDSP).

“This achievement reflects the great attention of the Royal Government of Cambodia through the concerted efforts of DAC and the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans, and Youth Rehabilitation”, Mr. Popovic said. He also proposed to widely disseminate the NDSP to the sub-national level and to incorporate it into commune and village action plans, consistent with the speech of SamdechAkkaMohaSenaPadeiTecho HUN SEN, the Prime Minister of Cambodia. In addition, His Excellency Em Chan Makara, Secretary General of DAC, expressed his appreciation and thankfulness towards the UNDP in Cambodia for their cooperation. This included the development programs of UNDP, UNICEF, and USAID, in addressing disability issues for persons with disability in Cambodia in accordance with the NDSP 2014-2018.

His Excellency Em Chan Makara added that, the new progress relevant to disability included NDSP preparation, Prakas related to creating Disability Action Council at provincial/municipal level as well as disability working groups in ministries/institutions. These mechanisms above play a significant role in contributing to better implementation of the NDSP, as well as submittingthe report on the situation of persons with disabilities to the UN in the near future. He also suggested the UNDP in Cambodia help coordinate three important tasks:

1. Gather current statistics of persons with disabilities in order to assess the needs of persons with disabilities and report to the United Nations.
2. Help Disability Action Council build and strengthen capacity of specialized officials in order to effectively implement the NDSP.
3. Provide experts or technical advisers to monitor and evaluate the implementation of the NDSP as well as the CRPD in Cambodia.

In response, Mr. Velibor Popovic fully supported and accepted his Excellency’s suggestions to help build and strengthen capacity of members and staff of DAC, both at a national and sub-national level, for successful and effective implementation of the NDSP.

It is noted that in 2014, the disability working group of UNDP in Cambodia signed an agreement to fund DAC, US $150,000 each year for 3 years to support all activities related to disability sector in Cambodia.