INDIGENOUS PEOPLES’ WOMEN WITH DISABILITIES PARTICIPATE IN THE NATIONAL CLIMATE CHANGE ACTION PLAN FOR THE FIRST TIME

Indigenous women with disabilities are starting to participate in climate change negotiations, thanks to the African Development Bank (AfDB) project that is aiming at strengthening their involvement.
“It is the first time that women with disabilities from the pastoral indigenous communities are being involved in climate change conversations,” said Halima Shariff from Kajiado county, on the sidelines of the just concluded Marginalized Communities National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP) 2023-27 national conference.
Ten indigenous women with disabilities were supported by the Centre for Minority Rights Development (CEMIRIDE) to participate at the conference as part of the Strengthening the Voices of Women with Disability to Actively Participate in Climate Change Policy and Negotiations (STREVOW). Funded by AfDB through the African Climate Change Fund (ACCF), STREVOW is being implemented by Inclusive Climate Change Adaptation for a Sustainable Africa (ICCASA) and CEMIRIDE.
The conference aimed at supporting the participation and securing the inclusion of the issues and concerns of indigenous peoples and local communities in the ongoing development of NCCAP 2023-27. She added: “Women with disabilities have always been left out yet being members of indigenous communities, they are already disadvantaged and stigmatized”.
The NCCAP 203-27 conference was organized by the Center for Minority Rights Development (CEMIRIDE) in partnership with Indigenous Livelihood Enhancement Partners (ILEPA) NCCAP. The meeting brought together more than 70 participants including indigenous peoples’ representatives, including women with disabilities and state actors.
Josephine Seper a Maasai woman living with disability could not hide her joy for being included in the conversation. Judy Nagol from the Ogiek forest peoples was glad that she will share the knowledge with other women with disabilities from her community.