Disability Rights in Botswana: Perspectives of Individuals With Disabilities

Abstract

Even though the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities (UN-CRPD) 2006 has been in existence for the last 10 years, the Government of Botswana has not ratified the convention. As a result, individuals with disabilities (IWDs) fail to access services and are at the mercy of the service providers. This qualitative study involved in-depth interviews with 30 IWDs about their experiences related to disability rights. Analysis of the data indicated that IWDs face several challenges in exercising their basic rights; these challenges being (a) stigmatization, (b) infrastructural barriers, (c) transport barriers, and (d) information barriers. Findings suggested that awareness of disability rights among IWDs, caregivers, and the general public was generally low. As a result, many IWDs were not aware of their rights and therefore could not exercise their rights fully.

Disability Policies and Management in Bolivia: Changes and Challenges

“…Changing this dynamic requires specific actions aimed at raising awareness regarding the importance of employment as a socializing agent and a bridge to achieve inclusion in other social spheres (leisure, culture, social, and political engagement). Similarly, based on evidence from other contexts with no international legal regulations (Mukhopadhyay & Moswela, 2019), although PWD are unable to exercise their rights fully, ensuring their formal recognition helps them to become aware of their rights and demand to be able to exercise them thoroughly.…”

Community-based workers’ capacity to develop inclusive livelihoods for youth with disabilities in Botswana

“…More consistent and legally enforced implementation of a human rights-based approach and stronger coordination of disability services across the sectors would better resolve the policy and structural difficulties experienced by community-based workers than the centralisation of specialised disability services. Whilst Botswana is not a signatory of the CRPD (UN 2006 ), the country’s disability policy recognises and protects the disability rights and dignity of individuals (Mukhopadhyay & Moswela 2020 :47). However, few of the country’s policies make specific provision for disability or define disability clearly.…”

“…However, few of the country’s policies make specific provision for disability or define disability clearly. There is also no specific legislation offering comprehensive legal protection for people with disabilities (Dinokopila & Mmatli 2014 :33), a situation that puts people with disabilities at the mercy of service providers (Mukhopadhyay & Moswela 2020 :46). Translation of policy into practice has moreover been slow (Omotoye 2018 :10–11), suggesting that several of the factors characterising ‘policy evaporation’ (Alfred & Harrison 2006 :6) could be at play in Botswana: insufficient political commitment, complexities presented by mainstreaming, inadequate funding and insufficient guidance during implementation.…”

“…These conditions are far more severe for the 59 103 people with disabilities (2.9% of the overall population), particularly the 15 701 youth in the 15–34 year category (Mmatli, Kebotsamang & Lesetedi 2014 :204–208). Researchers acknowledge the existence of policy and structures in Botswana that recognise the rights of persons with disabilities, such as the 1996 National Policy on Care for People with Disabilities and the Coordinating Office for People with Disabilities established in 2010 in the Office of the President (Mukhopadhyay & Moswela 2020 :46–48; Omotoye 2018 :1–9). However, researchers also point out that the country does not have disability-specific legislation entrenching equal opportunities in policies across all sectors of government.…”

“…This makes it difficult to enforce the implementation of policy. The government has also not signed or ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN-CRPD 2006 ), which provides a framework for foregrounding the dignity and basic human rights of people with disabilities as equal members of society and for systematically mainstreaming disability issues as integral to strategies for sustainable development (Mukhopadhyay & Moswela 2020 :46–47; Omotoye 2018 :7; UN-CRPD 2006 ). Policy development has furthermore stalled in Botswana – revised disability policy drafted in 2011 to remove structural limitations to the meaningful integration of people with disabilities into social, economic, political and cultural aspects of life (Dinokopila & Mmatli 2014 :22) has still not been accepted (Omotoye 2018 :1).…”