By Mustapha Lawal
Millions of persons with special needs in Nigeria are denied access to social amenities such as healthcare and inclusive education. They are unable to access public buildings in schools, hospitals, malls, and motor parks. They are denied dignified jobs and subjected to a life of anguish and poverty. Available data provided by the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) put the population of people with disabilities (PWDs) in Nigeria at 35.1 million, which translates to about 15 percent of the nation’s population, and more than 90% of them live in poverty.
Their lives are characterised by systemic marginalisation and human rights abuses, including stigma, violence, and social deprivation, despite laws guaranteeing their rights and inclusion in society.
Nigeria ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2007 and its Optional Protocol in 2010. Since then, civil society groups and people with disabilities have called on the government to put it into practice. In 2011 and 2015, the National Assembly passed the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Bill 2009, but former President Goodluck Jonathan declined to sign it into law. The bill for the new law was passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate joint committee in November 2016, but was not sent to Buhari for his signature until December 2018. On January 17, 2019, former President Buhari denied on national television that he had received the bill. Public outcry followed, and barely five days later, he signed the bill into law.
In 2019, the Nigerian government passed the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, marking a pivotal moment in Nigeria’s legal journey toward equality and accessibility. The act was signed into law on January 23, 2019, by former Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari following several years of relentless advocacy by disability rights groups and activists.
The Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act prohibits discrimination based on disability and aims to ensure the full integration of persons with disabilities into society. The Act mandates that all public buildings and structures be designed and constructed to be accessible to persons with disabilities, including provisions for ramps, rails, elevators, and other necessary modifications. It also requires that public transportation systems be made accessible to persons with disabilities and emphasizes the need for public awareness campaigns to promote understanding and acceptance of persons with disabilities.
“Accessibility is not just for persons with disabilities; it benefits everyone. Ramps, signage, and thoughtful design are inclusive for parents with strollers, the elderly, and others. We must shift the mindset from charity to universal access.”
– Blessing Oladunjoye,
Publisher of BONews Service and disability rights advocate
The act defines discrimination as any action or omission that limits or denies a person with a disability the enjoyment of their rights and fundamental freedoms on the basis of their disability. It establishes a National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) to promote, protect, and enforce the rights of persons with disabilities and provides for penalties for discriminatory practices.
The legislation was hailed as a milestone. It signaled an institutional commitment to the rights of persons with disabilities, aligning with Nigeria’s obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
The Five-Year Deadline: What Changed?
Among other provisions, the signed law mandated a five-year transition period, ending in January 2024, for public buildings and facilities to comply with accessibility standards, including ramps, lifts, accessible signage, and toilets.
However, five years later, compliance remains alarmingly low. Even public institutions, including universities, general hospitals and other government offices, have yet to provide basic accessibility features like ramps, lifts, tactile signage or accessible toilets for persons with disabilities. A 2023 audit by the Centre for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD) revealed that fewer than 25% of public institutions in Abuja had implemented the required modifications. In state capitals and rural areas, the figures are likely far lower. In practical terms, this means that many citizens remain unable to enter government buildings, schools, healthcare centres, or courts, not due to lack of qualification or interest, but because a flight of stairs separates them from basic services.
Similarly, a new national study, the State of Disability Inclusion Report (2024), points to this worrying implementation gap. The assessment on disability inclusion found that “a majority of sampled public facilities remain non‑compliant” with the requirements of the Disability Act, even after the January 2024 transition deadline. During the launch of that report, the Executive Secretary of the NCPWD stressed that although the five‑year grace period had expired, “many public spaces remained inaccessible”, attributing the failure to enforceable change to “inadequate funding, poor enforcement, low awareness, and weak coordination”.
Blessing Oladunjoye, publisher of BONews Service and a disability rights advocate, argues that poor funding impedes Nigeria’s disability-inclusive infrastructure, though simple, affordable adjustments can often suffice. “There is a lack of willpower by stakeholder groups and insufficient budgetary allocation toward disability-inclusive infrastructure. Many institutions think it will cost millions, but often, simple, well-informed architectural adjustments can make a big difference.”
This gap isn’t just inconvenient; it’s a violation of rights. When a university student cannot access a lecture hall, or a job seeker is unable to attend an interview because the building lacks a ramp, it is not an unfortunate oversight; it is structural exclusion.
Similarly, inaccessibility in polling units undermines democratic participation. Despite legal provisions guaranteeing support for voters with disabilities, recent special reports have exposed deeply troubling gaps. A comprehensive assessment by SBM Intelligence during the 2023 presidential election found that only 22.3% of disabled respondents reported the availability of any assistive voting aids at their polling centres. Specific tools were virtually non-existent; only 5.65% encountered Braille ballots, 7.6% saw large embossed prints, 2.7% saw infographics, and just 4% had access to sign language interpreters. In a striking 77.7% of cases, no form of support was provided at all. This lack of accessibility directly undermines the independence and dignity of disabled voters, preventing many from casting their ballots. Similarly, the Inclusive Friends Association (IFA) reported that a full 60% of polling units had no Braille ballot guides for blind voters, and 76% had no magnifying glasses for persons with low vision or albinism despite legal mandates in the 2022 Electoral Act. These omissions disproportionately affected those who required such tools to participate meaningfully in the election.
Civil society groups like TAF Africa documented numerous failures in the 2024 preliminary audit of the Ondo State governorship election: many polling units lacked Braille guides, magnifying glasses, and essential forms like EC 30E PWD and EC 40H, even in units where disabled voters were registered. In one cited instance, a blind voter at St Thomas Church PU 008 could not vote independently due to lack of a Braille guide, and some physically disabled voters were denied priority voting or essential equipment entirely. Voices from the ground underscore this exclusion: in Benue State, PWD community representatives told a town hall meeting in March 2025 that they found polling units inaccessible, stranded without Braille guides, magnifiers, sign interpreters, or even wheelchair access despite federal fiscal support and legal provisions. One community leader lamented, “I visited polling units across Makurdi… they were stranded, with no provision made to support their voting process.”
These barriers extend far beyond the ballot box. Also, the lack of assistive aids in hospitals and public transportation centres compromises health and mobility. These are not isolated issues; they collectively diminish the dignity, opportunities, and social participation of persons with disabilities across the country.
Enforcement on Paper, Silence in Practice
The law does provide enforcement mechanisms. It empowers the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) to monitor compliance and stipulates penalties for individuals or entities that violate the provisions. Specifically, the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act prescribes fines of up to ₦1,000,000 (approx. $650) for corporate bodies and ₦100,000 (approx. $65) or a six-month jail term for individuals found guilty of discrimination. Section 4 of the Act makes it an offence to deny a person with a disability access to public premises, while Section 21 penalises refusal to provide accessibility aids in transportation systems. Section 26 further stipulates that failure to make public buildings accessible after the five-year transition period can result in sanctions, including fines and closure orders for non-compliant facilities.
“Yes, the Act says you’ll be penalised,” Oladunjoye notes, “but who has actually been penalised? Poor enforcement means people assume they can ignore the law with no consequences.” She also highlighted the absence of consistent accessibility audits, saying, “Most institutions don’t even know their compliance status. Some think full compliance will break the bank, but with proper audits and guidance, they’d realise it’s achievable.”
However, enforcement has been almost nonexistent in practice. Many government agencies and private institutions remain unaware or indifferent to the law’s requirements. High-profile sanctions or legal actions remain absent from public records. Although the Commission stated it would begin sealing non-compliant facilities after the law’s five-year transition period expired in January 2024, there is no evidence that such penalties have been applied. In a 2023 interview, NCPWD’s Executive Secretary acknowledged that enforcement during the transition period was intentionally minimal but claimed that enforcement systems were being developed post-deadline. But there has been no follow‑up report or confirmed enforcement action on this till now.
Despite weak enforcement, the Commission has remained active in advocacy. It has hosted strategic meetings with disability rights groups, including a formal partnership with the Inclusive Friends Association (IFA) in March 2025 to integrate real-time accessibility monitoring into enforcement efforts. Earlier in 2025, NCPWD also convened a strategic dialogue with the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD) to explore avenues for data sharing and grassroots awareness. In addition, the Commission launched simplified versions of the Disability Act in Nigeria’s major languages and sign language to promote better legal understanding across communities. It has also organized national workshops, including one on inclusive education implementation and another focused on access to criminal justice for persons with disabilities.
These efforts are constructive and necessary, especially in a country where disability rights have long been overlooked. However, critics argue that advocacy alone cannot substitute for accountability. No public or private entity has yet been fined, sanctioned, or prosecuted under the Act. Without visible consequences for non-compliance, many institutions continue to treat the law as optional rather than binding. Until enforcement mechanisms are meaningfully activated, the gap between legislation and lived experience will persist.
Budget Deficit and Civil Society Pressure: Access Starved, Voices Raised
The NCPWD, while commendable in its advocacy efforts, remains under-resourced and limited in its operational capacity. As a result, enforcement often depends more on goodwill than on institutional accountability.
Civil society groups have intensified pressure on the government. The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has repeatedly urged the federal government to significantly increase budgetary allocations for persons with disabilities in both the 2024 supplementary and 2025 national budgets. Executive Director Auwal Rafsanjani warned that current allocations are “grossly inadequate” to serve over 30 million Nigerians with disabilities, leaving many without access to essential services like healthcare, education, and accessible infrastructure
In July 2024, CISLAC issued a formal statement calling for an urgent boost in funding to promote full inclusion and enable meaningful participation of persons with disabilities in Nigeria’s socio-economic and political life. The organization also highlighted systemic barriers that persist despite the 2018 Disability Act and the passage of the appropriation bills.
Even government officials have expressed concern. In December 2023, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Betta Edu, described the 2024 budget allocation for the Disability Commission as “low and unacceptable”, urging lawmakers to prioritize funding for disability-inclusive infrastructure and services.
Communities like Karimajiji in Abuja embody the consequences of this budgetary neglect. Residents report persistently poor roads, unstable power supply, underfunded schools, and broken promises. One community spokesperson lamented that their skill acquisition centre, built by an NGO, operates without electricity or teachers due to insufficient government support. “We don’t want to beg on the streets… but how can we be self-reliant without power, teachers, or jobs?”
Taken together, these criticisms underscore a harsh reality: legislation without meaningful financial backing remains symbolic. Disability rights laws may offer protections on paper, but without targeted, sufficient funding, implementation stalls, and rights remain unrealized.
Bridging the Gap: Policy Recommendations
To align Nigeria’s legal frameworks with lived realities, a growing number of experts, institutions, and civil society actors have offered clear and practical recommendations. Many of these were articulated in the 2024 State of Disability Inclusion Report, jointly produced by Project Enable Africa and the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD). The report urged the government to institutionalise annual accessibility audits of public buildings, accompanied by publicly available reports, to track compliance and foster transparency.
Similarly, the National Accessibility Regulations, introduced in 2023 by NCPWD in partnership with the Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption (RoLAC) Programme, call for mandatory audits and certification for all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), as well as the introduction of compliance milestones for public infrastructure retrofits.
Stakeholders at a 2025 disability policy roundtable, coordinated under the Office of the Head of Civil Service, further proposed that budget allocations be directly tied to accessibility compliance. Agencies failing to meet the minimum standards should face withheld or reallocated funding. Local governments, especially in rural and peri-urban regions, must also be equipped with technical guidance and financial incentives to support accessibility improvements.
To scale enforcement, experts recommend that the NCPWD should not act alone. Instead, it should delegate authority by partnering with state-level disability offices such as the Lagos State Office for Disability Affairs (LASODA). “NCPWD doesn’t need to do it all alone,” said Blessing Oladunjoye. “Strategic partnerships can boost reach and accountability.” Furthermore, civil society organisations and legal advocacy groups should be encouraged to initiate public interest litigation where violations occur. Judicial enforcement could help set critical precedents, especially in the absence of routine penalties by administrative bodies.
From Symbolism to Substance
Nigeria has the law. What it needs now is implementation. The five-year transition period offered a fair timeline to comply with accessibility mandates. Its expiration should not mark the beginning of a new cycle of excuses. Rather, it must serve as a turning point, a moment to transition from policy rhetoric to infrastructural reality.
True inclusion is not defined by laws on paper but by ramps built, doors widened, and opportunities made accessible to all. Until then, the rights of persons with disabilities in Nigeria will remain a constitutional promise that too often stops at the bottom of the stairs.
Bio:
Mustapha Lawal is an op-ed contributor, dedicated researcher, fact-checker, and youth development advocate with a passion for leveraging media, education, and technology to empower communities and demand accountability. Reach him via lawalmustapha1000@gmail.com or @themuslaw on X (formerly Twitter).
