Disabled Peoples’ International (DPI) is a human-rights organisation committed to the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities and the promotion of their full and equal participation in society. Established in 1981, DPI is represented through the active membership of national organisations of persons with disabilities in over 130 countries.
DPI is a cross-disability organisation — it represents people with physical, sensory, intellectual and psychosocial disabilities — and it is controlled by persons with disabilities themselves. It was founded as a social movement grounded in the social model of disability: the understanding that people are disabled by barriers in society, not by their impairments.
DPI works at national, regional and international level so that persons with disabilities can organise, speak for themselves and claim their rights where they live. Its motto — Vox Nostra, “A Voice of Our Own” — has expressed that purpose since the organisation was founded.
What DPI does
- Brings together national assemblies of persons with disabilities in six regional development blocks.
- Advocates for the ratification, implementation and monitoring of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
- Promotes disability-inclusive development and the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
- Supports leadership training and the strengthening of organisations of persons with disabilities, with particular attention to women and youth with disabilities.
What DPI is not
DPI is a world federation of organisations of persons with disabilities. It does not provide direct financial, medical or technical services. Its role is to support and empower persons with disabilities to organise and to claim their rights through direct participation at national, regional and international tables.