Last year’s Baku Climate Conference, the 29th Conference of Parties (COP) to the UN Framework Conventions on Climate Change (UNFCCC), concluded with mixed outcomes. While the contentious negotiations on climate finance took center stage at COP29, the plights of the most climate-vulnerable groups, especially persons with disabilities (PWDs), were largely overlooked. PWDs were mentioned only twice in the COP29 outcomes—Global Goal of Adaptation and Gender and Climate. Can the aspirations of the PWDs be protected during the climate breakdown by both the UNFCCC and member countries?
Avilash Roul.
Kazakhstan, like other Central Asian countries, is highly vulnerable to climate change risks due to its geographical position and the vulnerability of populations. In several bouts of devastating floods during March-April 2024, described by President Kassym-Jormart Tokayev as the “biggest natural disaster in 80 years,” almost 117,000 people were evacuated in Kazakhstan. Among other climate change-induced disasters, floods impact 950,000 people annually in Central Asia with economic losses of approximately $4.7 billion (based on 2017 figures). Kazakhstan faces particularly significant flood risks. Over the last two decades, floods occurred more than once every two years, causing economic losses and fatalities.
Globally, nearly 1.3 billion people, 16 percent of the world’s population, have a significant disability. There are approximately 725,000 individuals with disabilities in Kazakhstan, comprising nearly 3.6 percent of the total population. While 58.2 percent of PWDs reside in urban areas, 41.8 percent live in rural areas of Kazakhstan. More men (55.7 percent) have a disability compared to women (44.3 percent). However, a significant proportion of PWDs—420,300 individuals (58 percent)—are of working age, while 95,100 (26.9 percent) are elderly.
Due to discrimination, marginalization, inherent vulnerabilities, limited access to knowledge and socio-economic compulsions, the PWDs are disproportionately at higher risk from the adverse effects of climate emergencies.
Climate change impacts, both directly and indirectly, hinder the fulfilment of a wide range of fundamental human rights of the PWDs: access to food and nutrition, safe drinking water and sanitation, healthcare services, education and training, adequate housing and access to decent work. PWDs are likely to face more difficulties during required rescue, evacuations, response, relocation or recovery processes. During the 2024 floods, the PWDs encountered several challenges during evacuation. They face significant barriers, including inaccessible early warning systems, evacuation routes and shelters, as well as unresponsive governments and attitudinal problems, all of which aggravate their exclusion at all levels. PWDs face higher rates of morbidity and mortality among the most vulnerable groups during climate emergencies.
Ironically, despite being the most vulnerable segment of society, PWDs are often excluded from initiatives aimed at planning, preparing for, responding to, and recovering from disasters, as well as from climate change adaptation plans. During the COP16 in Cancun in 2010, the Cancun Agreement first identified PWDs as the most climate-vulnerable groups and emphasized the inclusion of PWDs under climate justice. Similar importance has been provided to PWDs in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (SDGs) – Goals 4, 8, 10, 11, 13, and 17. While the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) entered into force in 2008 and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 was adopted in 2015, the integration of PWDs as Disability Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction (DiDRR) plans are yet to be devised and implemented. The PWDs have been largely left behind in decision-making processes at the global (UN Climate Conferences), national (national climate action plans) and local (provincial climate action plans, state disaster plans, city disaster or climate plans and village disaster plans).
In Kazakhstan, several legislative measures and targeted programs have been initiated to empower PWDs and enhance their capacity to adapt to climate emergencies. Laws such as “On Civil Protection (2014)” and its amendments, “On States of Emergency (2003)” and “Combating Terrorism (1999),” include provisions for PWDs in national policies. Additionally, the Ministry of Emergency Situations in 2020 introduced guidelines outlining procedures and methods to ensure the safety of PWDs during emergencies.
The ministry has periodically developed leaflets on floods for visually impaired people for distribution in special boarding schools in the cities of Almaty, Shymkent, Taraz, Pavlodar, Karagandy, Atyrau and Oskemen. While there are mechanisms for information sharing, such as electric sirens, loudspeakers, and a single signal “Attention Everyone” for warning the population of threats or occurrence of disasters, no comprehensive procedures specifically address the needs of PWDs during emergencies. For visually impaired individuals, street siren speech devices and radio broadcasts are available, while SMS messages and television news channels cater to those with hearing impairments. However, are these initiatives sufficient to overcome the barriers faced by PWDs during climate breakdowns?
Kazakhstan is in the process of generating data and identifying the real-time locations of the PWDs. Currently, only 13.7 percent of PWDs (approximately 100,000 individuals) have been registered in the AWS-Dispatcher system, an automated workstation, which automatically informs rescuers about the whereabouts of the PWDs. The remaining 67 percent of PWDs still need to be identified and their locations documented thereafter, integrated. It is commonly observed that PWDs are left behind or abandoned during evacuation except those with strong family values. Moreover, relocation places are inaccessible, and PWDs are sometimes denied entry into shelters due to misconceptions that they need complex medical services. Instead of removing barriers and enabling better support for PWDs, these challenges often escalate during emergencies.
Disability comes in many forms and is non-homogenous. Specific and special attention must be before, during and after emergencies. A dedicated PWD policy is required to comprehensively address the aspirations of PWDs in Kazakhstan. Meaningful participation, inclusion, and leadership of PWDs and their representative organizations (OPDs) in disaster risk reduction and climate-related decision-making at local, national, regional, and global levels must be prioritized. Such an approach lies at the heart of climate action that respects the rights of PWDs. After the UN General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a historic and bold resolution in 2022 on ‘the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment as a human right’, it’s imperative to protect the PWDs and other vulnerable groups as a priority.
Yet, PWDs are frequently and unintentionally excluded from plans and decisions about their local areas and their well-being. Consequently, the plans are not effective in addressing the special targeted care for PWDs. It is essential to ensure that PWDs and their organizations are involved from the outset in the planning, design, and execution of climate action and disaster management plans. This participation must be mandatory, from national to local levels, to guarantee that these plans accommodate the specific needs of PWDs. Emergency coordination among stakeholders should integrate disability as a core, cross-cutting theme in all projects. As Kazakhstan prioritizes disaster resilience as a key issue, empowering PWDs by removing barriers must be an urgent focus in the face of climate breakdown.
The author is Dr. Avilash Roul, an international advisor on Transboundary Rivers and Climate Change Risks, German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ), a development agency headquartered in Bonn and Eschborn that provides services in the field of international development cooperation.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of The Astana Times.
