Disability at a Glance 2021: The Shaping of Disability-Inclusive Employment in Asia and the Pacific

Disability-inclusive employment has yet to be achieved in the Asia-Pacific region, where 690 million persons with disabilities live.

Available data reveal that persons with disabilities fare worse than persons without disabilities throughout the labour market. Persons with disabilities - particularly women, youth and rural inhabitants - experience higher rates of unemployment and economic inactivity and are at greater risk of vulnerable employment and insufficient social protection than others without disabilities. The lack of economic resilience exposed them to even more complex vulnerabilities when the COVID-19 pandemic hit and brought about prolonged public health and socioeconomic crises across the region.

By this publication, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) offers a regional review of the employment status of persons with disabilities. The intent is to galvanize stakeholders into action and to inspire effective and innovative solutions, taking into account latest developments in the world of work. Disability at a Glance 2021: The Shaping of Disability-Inclusive Employment in Asia and the Pacific proposes a range of recommendations to Governments and other stakeholders in the region towards upholding the rights of persons with disabilities to employment that are enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Incheon Strategy to “Make the Right Real” for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific.