Human rights is one of the Nordic Council of Ministers’ three focus areas for collaboration on disability. Of particular importance is work to enact the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Through the Council of Ministers’ Nordic Programme for Cooperation on Disability Issues 2023–2027, the Nordic Welfare Centre has been given the task of gathering knowledge and networks on how the Convention is being implemented in the countries, including the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland.
For implementation to be effective, many actors need to contribute. In addition to the states, there are also municipalities and disability organisations. The many similarities in the Nordic welfare states’ systems and the ambition of disability policy mean that the added value of collaboration is strong. Human rights, participation and freedom of movement are focus areas in the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Nordic Programme for Cooperation on Disability Issues 2023–2027
Once a country has ratified and legally endorsed the convention, the process of reporting about how the country lives up to the tenets of the convention is initiated. The countries are subsequently reviewed by the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. You can see the status of the Nordic countries in the process of reporting and review here.