In Nepal, persons with intellectual disabilities continue to be deprived their right to vote. This project intends to increase the awareness and knowledge of project stakeholders ( 400 people with intellectual disabilities who live in remote rural Nepal, their families and representative organizations, service providers, and government) on inclusive elections coupled with equality before the law to develop larger-scale systemic reforms through law and policy reform proposals.
According to the 2011 National Census of Nepal, there are 50,000 persons with intellectual disabilities. Persons with intellectual disabilities, especially women with disabilities face several obstacles during the voting process. For example, laws and policies are not inclusive of persons with intellectual disabilities. This project works with decision makers in the justice system to remove all barriers that prevent persons with intellectual disabilities from inclusive elections.
This project aims to: Identify and challenge the barriers persons with intellectual disabilities face in exercising their right to equal recognition before the law and political participation by establishing baseline understanding of the national-scale implementation of equality before the law; Influence decision makers in the justice system in order to develop practices and policies that uphold the right to vote for persons with intellectual disabilities.
The goal of this initiative is to develop enduring impact, engage key government departments for sustaining the inclusion of all people with intellectual disabilities, build networks, and provide ongoing training. Also, as the project trains and organizes policy-makers with a pre-existing interest in right to vote, they will use the capacities they acquire and the links they develop beyond the funding period.
