One of the criticisms of the technology industry is that, by focusing on products and platforms, it has forgotten about people. Advocates for disability rights are adding that they want to see a greater commitment to disability inclusion in product development as well as global development.
Last month, a group of civil society organizations published a call to action on Devex arguing that donor agencies and implementing organizations are failing to fulfill their commitments to inclusion of people with disabilities. Delivering on this promise would have a big impact, particularly given that the roughly 15 percent of the global population who live with disabilities are also disproportionately living in poverty.
As Silicon Valley continues to emerge as a key partner to the global development community, the technology sector could make or break the future of disability inclusion and strike a blow against the unequal treatment of people with disabilities, experts told Devex.
About the author
Catherine Cheneycatherinecheney
Catherine Cheney is the Senior Editor for Special Coverage at Devex. She leads the editorial vision of Devex’s news events and editorial coverage of key moments on the global development calendar. Catherine joined Devex as a reporter, focusing on technology and innovation in making progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. Prior to joining Devex, Catherine earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Yale University, and worked as a web producer for POLITICO, a reporter for World Politics Review, and special projects editor at NationSwell. She has reported domestically and internationally for outlets including The Atlantic and the Washington Post. Catherine also works for the Solutions Journalism Network, a non profit organization that supports journalists and news organizations to report on responses to problems.
