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‘ASEAN Enabling Masterplan 2025’: A new horizon for persons with disabilities
The adoption of the “ASEAN Enabling Masterplan 2025: Mainstreaming the Rights of Persons with Disabilities” at the Singapore Summit on Nov. 15 marks a new milestone for persons with disabilities in the regional community.
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Southeast Asian unity: A woman passes flags at the ASEAN Summit at Suntec Convention Centre in Singapore. (Reuters/Edgar Su)
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he adoption of the “ASEAN Enabling Masterplan 2025: Mainstreaming the Rights of Persons with Disabilities” at the Singapore Summit on Nov. 15 marks a new milestone for persons with disabilities in the regional community. For the first time since the commencement of ASEAN in 2015, the leaders have shown to persons with disabilities what it means to be part of a “people-centered community”.
The Masterplan has created key action points for the three ASEAN pillars: the political security, economic and the social-cultural communities, to make the rights of persons with disabilities relevant and aligned with various international and regional instruments, such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities that all ASEAN member states have ratified, the “Incheon strategy: Making the rights real for persons with disabilities in the Asia Pacific”, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
An important added value of the Masterplan to the ASEAN community building process is that it will not only help shift the perception that disability rights concern only social welfare agendas, but will engage and involve the political and economic arenas of ASEAN.
Examples of its 76 action points include recognition of meaningful participation in public and political life and equal opportunity for persons with disabilities to access financial services and be entrepreneurs or self-employed, especially in micro, small and medium enterprises as well as on inclusive education, accessible healthcare benefits and systems, and disaster risk reduction and preparedness for persons with disabilities.
