Submissions

To: United Nations Conference Of States Parties To The CRPD (COSP18) 
Date: April 2026

Purpose

DPA responded to a UNCOSP questionnaire replying with specific initiatives, advocacy efforts, policy recommendations all aimed at promoting inclusive development and equity for disabled people across a wide range of social and economic sectors. 

Summary of DPA submission

DPA advocates for equity and inclusion through system-wide change supporting a wide range of initiatives, including the Mahi Tika employment project, which assists disabled people in entering training or industries of their choice, and rights-based strategies designed to ensure universal access to basic services and income security. 

Additionally, DPA champions climate resilience by facilitating disability-led workshops to ensure that disabled individuals are not left behind during severe weather events. They also back the inclusion of stalking as a criminal offence and stronger legal protections for victims of sexual violence to address the disproportionate risks faced by disabled women. 

Conversely, DPA strongly opposes measures that undermine the rights of disabled people, such as disability funding cuts and the re-establishment of charter schools, which they argue contravene international human rights obligations. They are against the outsourcing of health services to the private sector, as it can lead to unaffordable care, and they advocate for the repeal of the Minimum Wage Exemption Act, which permits lower pay for disabled workers. 

Furthermore, DPA opposed the Equal Pay Amendment Act 2025 for cancelling pay equity claims and rejects any educational amendments that reduce equity funding or representation for disabled students. The organisation also condemns discriminatory practices such as the sterilisation of disabled women without full consenting access to services. 

DPA provides several key recommendations centered on universal design to ensure all public spaces, housing stock, and transport systems are accessible on an equal basis. They recommend a "whole of journey" approach to transportation and urge the government to modernise the Contraception Sterilisation and Abortion Act 1977 to better support disabled women. 

A recurring recommendation is the meaningful inclusion of disabled people in all decision-making processes, including urban development, national policy-making, and public health emergency planning.