Disability Not a Barrier Initiative (DINABI) has sensitised Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in Ondo State on their legal rights and called on the state government to urgently domesticate and amend its disability law in line with national and international standards.

At a one-day capacity-building workshop held in Akure on Wednesday, DINABI trained disability clusters, media practitioners, and other stakeholders on legal frameworks, policy formulation, and strategic advocacy for inclusive healthcare and social protection.

The Executive Director of DINABI, Mr. Olajide Funsho Benjamin, explained that the workshop was designed to empower PWDs to advocate for themselves and to understand how to engage the government constructively on issues affecting them.

“The current Ondo State Disability Law only establishes an agency for welfare but does not adequately address inclusive education, social protection, accessible healthcare, or gender-based violence. We have reviewed the law and submitted the draft to the State Law Commission, and we are urging the government to forward it as an executive bill to the House of Assembly,” Benjamin said.

He noted that while over 26 states in Nigeria have domesticated the National Disability Act, Ondo remains the only state in the South-West yet to enact a comprehensive disability law.

Programme Officer, Ms. Adeleye Faith Aderonke, stressed that participants were being equipped to understand disability as a rights-based model rather than a charity model, in order to strengthen their advocacy for inclusion and non-discrimination.

Legal practitioner, Barr. Oloruntosin Ogunlowo, called for stronger enforcement mechanisms, lamenting that many inspectorate and regulatory bodies in the state were inactive due to lack of funding and resources.
“Most of our laws are sleeping after they are formulated. It is we, human beings, that must activate them,” he said, urging NGOs and the public to escalate issues to attract government response.

Participants, such as Pastor Ladi Adefemi from the Visual Impairment Cluster, described the training as an eye-opener on how to channel demands effectively.

The workshop brought together NGOs, legal experts, media representatives, and state officials, who pledged to support the disability community in pushing for the review and implementation of an inclusive law in Ondo State.