Meeting the needs of persons with disabilities in humanitarian emergencies

The Government and National Society of New Zealand jointly pledge:

• within their respective mandates, to work for greater awareness and inclusion of people living with disabilities during humanitarian crises, to take into account the specific vulnerabilities they face, and to promote their protection under the relevant bodies of law; and
• to take active measures to seek to ensure that their needs are addressed in the planning, delivery and monitoring of humanitarian assistance activities, so that they can effectively participate in and access support services, including by engagement with the disability community in our programme design and implementation, and by promoting inclusive programming in risk preparedness, relief and recovery.

Action plan

Proposed evaluation criteria:

• promotion of IHL and other legal protections for persons with disabilities at relevant international meetings and fora, internationally and domestically, to uphold their rights as an integral part of effective humanitarian assistance;
• internationally and domestically, programming for humanitarian assistance that acknowledges that people with disabilities may be disproportionately affected by disaster or other emergency, and that engages with the disability community and supports as appropriate existing disability support structures, working to ensure their continued resilience and service continuity in times of emergency;
• New Zealand Red Cross publication of a best practice guide or resource materials to help inform disaster response and recovery related to disability sector, based in part on lessons learnt from the Canterbury earthquakes response.