Youth Regional Conference on Disability
Youth of today are not just leaders of tomorrow but also partners of today. This will be the emphasis and focus of the
Youth Regional Conference on Disability 2015, which will be hosted at the Tanoa International Hotel in Nadi, Fiji on the
16th and the 17th of February.
The Youth Regional Conference on Disability will bring together development partners, donor agencies, Disabled Persons
Organisations (DPOs), regional organisations and disability service providers and stakeholders to discuss issues, good
practices and forge partnership and action towards building a disability inclusive Pacific.
The conference aims to achieve a self-sustaining, climate resilient, peaceful, healthy, inclusive, responsive,
democratic and transparent inclusive Pacific society where all young people with disabilities are empowered as equal
partners in global efforts for sustainable development.
It will strive to strengthen partnership towards a disability inclusive Pacific for youth with disabilities in the
Pacific. Youth with disabilities are among the most disadvantaged group in the community, have poor health outcomes, and
are less economically active, experience higher rates of poverty and are given fewer or no opportunities to participate
in community discussions and involvement.
This conference will provide an opportunity for youth with disabilities around the Pacific to share their experiences
faced in their various countries and together with other youth with disabilities in the Pacific develop ways forward to
build an inclusive Pacific.
An outcome statement from the youth conference will be tabled at the main conference to ensure that youth with
disabilities are included in the discussion of ways forward for disability in the Pacific.
ENDS