Diversity, Inclusion, Critical for PWDs Contribution to Nigeria’s GDP

Oluchi Chibuzor

The organised private sector under the umbrella of Nigerian Business Disability Network (NBDN) has stressed the importance of more companies embracing diversity and inclusion at the workplace.

In view of this, they agreed that when organisations create opportunities for everyone without discrimination and employ people with disabilities, they are more secured and responsible and participate in contributing to the nation’s GDP.

The call is coming as about 25 million people in the country live with disabilities and remain a critical workforce with capacity, potential and competence that can benefit any organisation.

Speaking at a Nigeria diversity and inclusion conference with the theme, ‘Eliminating Barriers Against Inclusive Workplaces In The Private Sector’, held in Lagos, recently, the Executive Secretary, National Disability Commission, James Lalu, said the country must do more in employing people with disabilities.

According to him, the country must embrace the community PWDs, while the OPS must come together to see how they can break all entry point barriers “our thinking, business and activities with regard to PWDs.

“Our productivity in the workplace increases once given the right opportunity and that is why we will support any organisation who employs anybody with disabilities with the amenities to work in that organisation. And that is why we are using this conference to urge all the OPS to do more by employing us as part of their minimum acceptability standard in the workplace,” he said.

Giving her welcome address, the Chairperson, Nigeria Business Disability Network and Head of Sustainability, Access Bank Plc, Omobolanle Victor-Laniyan, expressed satisfaction as Nigerians are starting to have these conservations to educate one another on the seriousness of inclusion.

“Respecting the rights of people with disabilities is necessary for upholding Nigeria’s values of dignity, respect, understanding, and generosity. While we may have side-lined some of these values as a nation causing us to relegate inclusion efforts, our collective duty as Nigerians is to ensure that we reignite these efforts, and consequently our values as a people. 

“As we set out to drive the various agendas within our organisations, we must recognise persons with disabilities for who they are -effective agents of change whose contributions bring enormous benefits. We must better understand the importance of empowerment, accessibility, and equity in sustainable development. We must foster collaboration with other businesses, civil society, disability communities, and international organisations. This is the role of the Nigerian Business Disability Network.”

For the keynote speaker, Dr. Adebukola Adebayo, a disability inclusion consultant with World Bank, Nigeria, said barriers like low level of universal designs in the construction must be adequately catered for.

“You cannot produce different things for different people all the time and that is why the idea of universal design in the workplace is key; the tools you use, the computers you procure, the furniture can be adapted to support as many people as possible and it saves you cost in the long run.

“Also the capacity of those companies themselves to utilise the potential of those with disabilities. OPS must understand the difference between cost versus the rate of return on investment; again in the long run you will have contributed to reducing poverty and then improved productivity as an organisation and at the end of the day you save investment

The conference attracted various human resource managers of some OPS in the country and was held in commemoration of the 11th Global Accessibility Awareness Day, which aims to promote inclusive organisational policies and position organisations to become disability confident employers and influence an inclusive employment ecosystem.