Introducing the Global Network of Refugees with Disabilities 

Earlier this month in Nairobi, the Global Network of Refugees with Disabilities (GNRD) brought together refugee-led organisations from Syria, Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan, Malawi, Sweden, and South Africa for a three-day, in-person discussion on organisational aspirations, strategy, and the practical steps needed to get there — with additional participation online to ensure members facing travel restrictions could still shape the outcomes. The GNRD, which formally launched in December with an event at the Global Refugee Forum, is based in Sweden. 

The scale of the issue is impossible to ignore: UNHCR estimates 117.3 million people have been forced to flee their homes globally. If disability prevalence reflects global estimates, this suggests upwards of 17.6 million forcibly displaced people being persons with disabilities. The GNRD is currently building its internal governance toward a strong and sustainable organisation poised to represent this overlooked intersectional demographic that is far too often missing from humanitarian decision-making.

Methodology 

An inclusive and participatory methodology was developed to ensure that GNRD members and leadership had complete ownership over the process, balancing the opportunity for in-person knowledge transfer with much-needed discussions on organisational strengthening. At the same time, the opportunity for participants to get to know each other on a personal level was important to facilitate, affording an opportunity to build mutual trust and understanding across communication and linguistic barriers, addressed through the engagement of service providers. A safe space for discussion was built and preserved among participants, enabling personal reflections and experiences on barriers to participation to inform the proceedings. A hybrid set up enabled the participation of OPD members from Ireland and the United States to account for GNRD members with travel restrictions.

Knowledge transfer 

On the first day, participants examined how frameworks like the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Global Refugee Compact, and commitments garnered from forums like the Global Disability Summit can be used as practical tools to influence refugee and humanitarian policy. Knowledge products from the Inclusive Futures programming on refugees with disabilities were used to strengthen their exposure to inclusive programming in humanitarian action. Members reported that sharing such tools gave them more confidence to advocate in policy and programming spaces with clarity, but they also pointed to gaps in knowledge production regarding the experiences of refugees with disabilities, including violence, exploitation, and abuse.

Governance and planning  

Over the next two days, participants engaged in a detailed facilitated participatory exercise, rooted in consensus, to map out the vision and specific milestones for the organisation, as well as identifying the partnerships and needs of the organisation to achieve those. This exercise promoted ownership of all members over the process as well as over individual small measures to be taken to begin progress towards the ultimate goal for both refugees with disabilities and those of the organisation itself.

Participants also had the opportunity to discuss the foundational documents of the organisation in detail, and through a group exercise, they also built a values statement for the organisation reflective of the discussions engaged in. 

"The Nairobi workshop reminded me that GNRD is not built on structures alone, but on courage, trust, and shared responsibility."

Julius Mvenyi Ntobuah, Chair of GNRD

Facilitators and resource persons  

The facilitation team comprised representatives of IDA, GNRD, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (Tomoko Ishihara and Aba Opoku-Mensah, joining remotely), and the International Refugee Assistance Project, an associate member of GNRD, represented by the Director of Disability Inclusion and Accessibility, Elham Youssefian. They were complemented by the presence of important partners, including Washington Opiyo Sati, regional program manager, Africa Disability Rights Fund, and Diana Dalton, Deputy High Commissioner and Development Director, Kenya, who shared perspectives and offered words of support for GNRD and its members.

What’s next 

GNRD continues its parallel-track approach to strengthening governance and sustainability, ensuring that the experiences of refugees with disabilities inform both the disability and human rights agendas, as well as the humanitarian and refugee sectors. IDA is committed to supporting both of these priority issues as GNRD diversifies its membership and expands its influence on emerging agendas as a part of our movement-strengthening vertical.

IDA’s support for emerging networks of under-represented persons with disabilities includes more than technical support or fiscal sponsorship; it encompasses a full range of services that enable organisations to reach their full potential in a strengths-based manner, identified and led by the organisations themselves.