Disability Rights and Elections
6-8 December 2024
Zimbabwe
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) with assistance from cooperating partners, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), conducted a Disability Rights and Elections BRIDGE Modular workshop from the 6th to the 8th of December 2024. The Disability Rights and Elections workshop was centred on the BRIDGE Module with the target population being the Civil Society Organizations and its electoral staff. This initiative was part of ZEC’s ongoing review of its Gender and Disability Policy, aimed at equipping staff with crucial knowledge and insights. The aim was to improve the understanding and enhancing strategies for access and inclusion for disadvantaged and marginalized groups.
Despite Zimbabwe’s policy and legal framework recognizing the challenges faced by Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) and advocacy for their participation in political and public life, actual engagement remains limited.
The training enabled participants to:
- Identify barriers in all phases of the electoral process that can limit the access of Persons with Disabilities to participate in political and public life and identify solutions for dismantling these barriers.
- Provide a networking opportunity for advocacy groups, as well as specific tools to analyse the electoral structures and procedures and develop strategies to promote access for Persons With Disabilities.
- Emphasise the importance of consultation processes with Persons with Disabilities and their representative organizations throughout the electoral cycle – from post-election analysis through design of materials and procedures – in order to identify and remove barriers that limit political participation.
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission therefore found it prudent to train people from different sectors that included DPOs, EMB staff (with and without disabilities), Media and Universities.
The training sessions were characterised by high levels of participation and interactions amongst the facilitators and participants. The content was suitable and comprehensive, and the methodologies employed were effective, engaging and very insightful.
It is highly recommended that more days be allocated to the Disability Rights and Elections module.
