The Working Group on the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2023–2032 (“Working Group”) was established pursuant to ESCAP Resolution 79/5 of May 2023, entitled “Implementation of the Jakarta Declaration on the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2023–2032”. The current Working Group maintains its essential role and is expanding its scope to address emerging regional challenges, as outlined in the Jakarta Declaration on the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2023–2032.
To ensure comprehensive representation and expertise in the Asian and Pacific region, the Working Group comprises 20 members from Governments and 20 members from civil society organizations. This balanced membership fosters a multi-stakeholder approach to guiding the implementation of the 2023–2032 Decade. Rules of Procedure of the Working Group can be found here.
In accordance with the Terms of Reference, the Working Group’s mandate encompassed multiple key functions: promoting the Decade at regional, subregional, and national levels; providing technical advice on the Declaration’s six priority areas; facilitating regional and subregional cooperation; fostering multi-stakeholder collaboration and reviewing implementation progress.
In reviewing the implementation of the Asia and Pacific Decade, the Working Group focuses on the Six Priority Areas of Action as outlined in the Jakarta Declaration, including:
Harmonizing national legislation with the CRPD;
- Promoting meaningful participation of persons with disabilities;
- Enhancing physical and digital accessibility;
- Engaging the private sector;
- Applying a gender-responsive, life-cycle approach to disability policies;
- Closing disability gaps and strengthening tracking capacities.
The first session of the Working Group was convened on 3–4 June 2025. During the first session, Working Group members reviewed recent progress in implementing the Jakarta Declaration, with a focus on economic inclusion and employment, improving accessibility and access to assistive technology, and evidence-based monitoring and implementation. Report from the First Session can be found here.
The second session of the Working Group will be convened on 26-27 August 2026. The second session will aim to discuss strategies for the effective implementation of the other three priority areas of the Jakarta Declaration and review the plan for the midpoint review of the Jakarta Declaration implementation.
For more information, you can contact Ms. Cai Cai (Chief of Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Section) at escap-sdd@un.org.