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KEPSA is the private sector apex and umbrella body set up in 2003, to bring together business community in a single voice to engage and influence public policy for an enabling business environment. over 500,000 direct and indirect members..
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ENHANCING DISABILITY INCLUSION IN THE WORKPLACE
- Published On: 2024-08-16
On 16th August 2024, KEPSA Foundation team, led by Executive Director Ms. Gloria Ndekei participated in a Disability Inclusion Exchange. The event brought together employers for a peer learning platform focused on enhancing disability inclusion in the workplace.
Studies indicate that persons with disabilities make up 16% of the world's population, with 80% of them being of productive age, yet more than 80% remain unemployed, while lack of disability inclusion contributes to a 7% loss in GDP. Despite national and international legal frameworks mandating disability inclusion, their implementation remains low.
Ms. Gloria Ndekei committed to developing a private sector disability mainstreaming toolkit to provide practical guidelines, support private sector to undertake disability inclusion self-check audits, raise awareness, and bolster the confidence of organizations to onboard persons with disabilities. She also committed to host roundtables aimed at enhancing disability inclusion with the goal of increasing employability and workplace awareness for persons with disabilities. Ms. Ndekei emphasized the unwavering commitment to making meaningful contribution to society and life of of the excluded in communities.
Ms. Quresha Ahmed, the Executive Director of the Institute of Human Resources Management (IHRM), emphasized that including persons with disabilities is not only the right thing to do but also a crucial step in fulfilling the constitutional mandate. She highlighted the importance of making deliberate efforts to implement and amplify the requirements of the Persons with Disabilities Act, 2003, which mandates that public and private employers reserve 5% of jobs for persons with disabilities.
Discussions during the meeting focused on how organizations can intentionally include persons with disabilities in various areas such as training and placement, creating inclusive workplace policies, recruitment and hiring practices, and implementing inclusive procurement policies with the aim of ensuring no one is left behind.