Interministerial Conference
Ministers and State Secretaries united for inclusion of persons with disabilities
Ministers and State Secretaries united and reunited p At the instigation of Karine Lalieux, ministers and state secretaries who are members of the CIM "Welfare, Sport and Family", representing all levels of power, committed themselves on Monday to joining forces to act in a more effective and coordinated way to create a truly inclusive society for people with disabilities.
The CIM, which has been re-launched for the first time in over eight years, will meet regularly between now and the end of the legislature to develop synergies and strengthen the actions of the entities and the federal government.
During this first meeting, the ministers and state secretaries took a first step towards developing an inter-federal strategy on disability 2021-2030.
Creating synergies
There are still many barriers for disabled people in our country, in all areas of daily life.
The figures - employment, risk of poverty, social exclusion, health, mobility, education, etc. - show that Belgium still has a lot to do. - They show that Belgium still has a lot of work to do to ensure the full inclusion of people with disabilities, thus fulfilling the obligations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which it ratified in 2009.
The division of competences between the different levels of government is not conducive to the implementation of a common vision, while the difficulties faced by persons with disabilities clearly go beyond linguistic and institutional boundaries.
Aware of the common challenges to be met, and having exchanged views on the initiatives taken at their level in the field of disability, the members of the Interministerial Conference agreed on Monday to actively relaunch their work on this theme.
A sub-working group on disability will be established within the CIM, with a work schedule until 2024.
First steps towards an inter-federal strategy on disability
One of the priorities of the Disability subgroup will be to identify the objectives and actions of a future inter-federal strategy on disability 2021-2030.
Such a strategy will help structure the challenges and clarify how the policies of the federated entities and the federal level contribute to meeting them. It is in line with both the UN recommendations and the strategy adopted by the European Commission, to which each Member State is invited to contribute.
Karine Lalieux: "There are many cross-cutting issues: poverty reduction and non-enforcement of rights, better data collection, harmonisation of the definition of disability, access to mobility and the labour market, etc. But thanks to the involvement of all entities, I am confident that we can show that our country can be a leader in creating an inclusive society for people with disabilities. We are never stronger than when we are united by a common will."
The CIM, which has been re-launched for the first time in over eight years, will meet regularly between now and the end of the legislature to develop synergies and strengthen the actions of the entities and the federal government.
During this first meeting, the ministers and state secretaries took a first step towards developing an inter-federal strategy on disability 2021-2030.
Creating synergies
There are still many barriers for disabled people in our country, in all areas of daily life.
The figures - employment, risk of poverty, social exclusion, health, mobility, education, etc. - show that Belgium still has a lot to do. - They show that Belgium still has a lot of work to do to ensure the full inclusion of people with disabilities, thus fulfilling the obligations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which it ratified in 2009.
The division of competences between the different levels of government is not conducive to the implementation of a common vision, while the difficulties faced by persons with disabilities clearly go beyond linguistic and institutional boundaries.
Aware of the common challenges to be met, and having exchanged views on the initiatives taken at their level in the field of disability, the members of the Interministerial Conference agreed on Monday to actively relaunch their work on this theme.
A sub-working group on disability will be established within the CIM, with a work schedule until 2024.
First steps towards an inter-federal strategy on disability
One of the priorities of the Disability subgroup will be to identify the objectives and actions of a future inter-federal strategy on disability 2021-2030.
Such a strategy will help structure the challenges and clarify how the policies of the federated entities and the federal level contribute to meeting them. It is in line with both the UN recommendations and the strategy adopted by the European Commission, to which each Member State is invited to contribute.
Karine Lalieux: "There are many cross-cutting issues: poverty reduction and non-enforcement of rights, better data collection, harmonisation of the definition of disability, access to mobility and the labour market, etc. But thanks to the involvement of all entities, I am confident that we can show that our country can be a leader in creating an inclusive society for people with disabilities. We are never stronger than when we are united by a common will."