Stakeholders in the disability sector have urged the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Administration to urgently implement its Inclusive Education Policy to ensure meaningful participation of children with intellectual disabilities in schools.
They made the call on Thursday in Abuja, at an event with theme:” Breaking the Barriers: Turning Inclusive Education into Practice,” organised by the Intellectual Disability Cluster under the Rights-In-Action Project.
The project is funded by Finland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with technical support from CBM Global Disability Inclusion, in partnership with Inclusive Friends Association (IFA) and the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD).
Mr Abdulazeez Musa, the Country Director, CBM Global Disability Inclusion, said inclusive education was not an act of charity but a matter of human rights, dignity and justice.
Musa said the goal should be to build an education system where every child, regardless of disability, could learn, participate, thrive and contribute meaningfully to society.
“While the FCT has taken an important step through the adoption of the Inclusive Education Policy, the true measure of success will be seen not in the existence of this policy itself, but in its implementation.
“Policies do not transform lives on their own. Classrooms do. Teachers do. Families do. Communities do. And of course, budgets do. Accountability does.”
He called on the government to provide adequate funding, teacher capacity development, accessible learning materials and inclusive infrastructure to translate the policy into meaningful impact.
Musa also urged organisations of persons with disabilities (OPDs) and self-advocates to remain actively involved in the process, stressing that policies affecting Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) should be designed and implemented with them rather than for them.
He called on families and communities to challenge stigma, while urging educators to embrace inclusive teaching practices and the media to move beyond narratives of pity and charity in reporting disability issues.
Mrs Ijeoma Fynecountry, Legal Resource Person, Down Syndrome Foundation and Project Lead, said Nigeria’s commitment to inclusive education was anchored in both domestic and international legal instruments.
Fynecountry cited the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and Convention on the Rights of the Child as instruments recognising education as a fundamental right.
She also cited Article 24 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the 1999 Constitution, the Compulsory, Free Universal Basic Education Act of 2004 and the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act of 2018.
She said the National Policy on Education and National Policy on Inclusive Education also provided for support to learners with disabilities through appropriate learning materials, teacher training and other assistance.
However, Fynecountry said the existence of laws and policies had not automatically translated into meaningful inclusion in classrooms.
“Too many learners with intellectual disabilities remain out of school or admitted without meaningful participation.
“Speaking about data, we discovered that even when you see that they have admission, there is no specific provision for them. They are just there in the classroom without actual meaningful participation.
“So, they are taught in environments that do not recognise their individual dignity, strengths, and potentials.”
Ms Becky Selekere, Programmes Manager, RBM Autism Foundation, said the real test of inclusive education was not just having a child in school but measuring whether the child could participate, communicate, learn, belong and progress within the school environment.
“For children with disabilities, inclusion should involve access to physical school environments, meaningful participation in lessons and activities, appropriate communication and learning support.
“It also means reasonable accommodations, protection from discrimination, and the opportunity to progress through the education system.
“For autistic learners, inclusion does not mean lowering expectations; it means removing unnecessary barriers so the child has a fair opportunity to meet those expectations.”
Selekere said many mainstream schools lacked accurate data, teachers with disability-specific training, differentiated teaching approaches, accessible infrastructure, adapted learning materials, assistive technology and communication support.
Representing the Intellectual Disability Cluster, Ayobami Adefioye, Programmes Manager, The Engraced Ones Prayers and Supports Advocacy Initiative, called for meaningful participation of PWDs in the design, implementation and monitoring of education policies.
Adefioye emphasised the principle of “Nothing about us without us,” saying persons with disabilities should be treated as co-designers, co-implementers and monitors of policies affecting them.
“The Rights in Action Project believes the FCT has a unique opportunity to become a model for effective implementation of Nigeria’s disability rights commitments.
“Let us be clear: a policy sitting on a shelf does not educate a child; implementation does.
“Inclusion becomes real only when children with disability are seen, supported, learning, and given genuine opportunity to reach their full potential.”
She called on the FCT Administration to increase budgetary allocation for inclusive education to 50 per cent by 2027, create a dedicated budget line for inclusive education and assistive technology and stablish mainstream inclusive model schools in area councils.
Adefioye also called for greater media coverage of disability issues and the adoption of inclusive language and positive narratives, urging the media to support public education campaigns in English and Nigerian languages.