The Minister for Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, today, Friday 27 February, opened a meeting on the Ibero-American Disability Programme, attended by the Ibero-American ambassadors accredited to our country, the Ibero-American Secretary General and the authorities of the Ibero-American Disability Programme.
The meeting identified the areas of disability that will be addressed at the Ibero-American Summit in Madrid on 4 and 5 November, under the slogan: ‘Ibero-America. Together we build our Community. Together we project it towards the future and towards the world’.
Albares stressed that ‘we must work to achieve an Ibero-America that puts people at the centre’. The minister also highlighted that ‘Ibero-America, from the outset, has been conceived as a space for inclusion’, both at the political level, where the States of the Ibero-American Community participate in all instances of political consultation and cooperation, and in the sphere of human relations, ‘where we all share the desire that no one should be left behind’.
Spain also aims to strengthen its foreign policy in the area of disability rights, for which it has created the Embassy on Special Mission for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, becoming one of only two countries to establish this role in its foreign service worldwide.
Ibero-American initiatives for inclusion
One of the areas of disability that will be addressed at the Madrid Summit is the implementation of the Ibero-American Disability Card. This card seeks to recognise disability status within the Ibero-American space, thus facilitating access to benefits and services for persons with disabilities during their temporary travels in the region. This instrument, which reinforces ‘Ibero-American citizenship’, will enable 90 million people with disabilities in Ibero-America to enjoy their rights on an equal footing with the rest of the population.
A committed Summit
ONCE will provide the Pro Tempore Secretariat with advice on accessibility and expert knowledge in this area to ensure full inclusion in all dimensions, as well as dedicating the 5 November lottery ticket that ONCE will raffle in commemoration of the 30th Ibero-American Summit.
For images of the event, click
here.
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