WHAT NIGERIAN BUSINESSES MUST KNOW ABOUT THE NIGERIA DISABILITY ACT 2018

By Benedicta Kave

Download our Disability Inclusion Toolkit Here

Introduction

The Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities Prohibition Act of 2018 (DAPDPA) (also known as the Disability Act) is a landmark piece of legislation that guarantees equal rights and opportunities for people with disabilities (PWDs). This act is crucial for fostering a more inclusive society where everyone can participate and thrive.

The Disability Act ensures PWDs have equal access to public spaces, employment opportunities and participation in society. But what does this mean for businesses?

Ensuring Accessibility

Public buildings, which include most businesses, must be accessible to people with disabilities. This means installing ramps, lifts, or other assistive devices to ensure everyone can navigate your business space with ease. The act provides a five-year grace period (which ended in 2023) for existing structures, public buildings, and automobiles which were previously inaccessible to persons with disabilities to be modified and made accessible to and usable for persons with disabilities.

It mandates that public buildings must not be erected until the building plan has been thoroughly scrutinized by the relevant authority to ensure that the plan conforms with the building code. This implies that all building plans and structures need to go through due processes and approval from relevant authorities to ensure the necessary accessibility needs are met.

The Disability Act makes provision for complaints of inaccessibility. In any event that individuals with disability find themselves in an inaccessible environment which they have a right or need to access, they can: seek redress in court or report the inaccessibility to the authority responsible for that environment. In response to such complaints, it is expected that the authority responsible takes prompt steps to remove such barrier and make the environment accessible. This doesn’t end here, as refusal to comply attracts financial implications.

Accommodations

Where a business is providing accommodation for its employees or customers as applicable, it is required to give priority to persons with disabilities. These accommodations could be health insurance, flexible work hours, provision of assistive technologies that enables work efficiency for persons with disabilities, allowing customers with disabilities the use of service animals where it is prohibited, and other accommodation needs as may be required by a person with disability.

?

Queues

Persons with disability must be given first consideration in queues and as much as possible be attended to outside the queue. This means whenever a person with disabilities is in the queue, he/she should be attended to before other customers. A person who contravenes this commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of NGN50,000 or six-months imprisonment term or both.

Equal Opportunities in Employment

The Disability Act?prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities in the workplace. A person with disability has the right to work on an equal basis with others and this includes the right to opportunity to gain a living by work freely chosen or accepted in the labour market and environment that is open. This means businesses have a duty to institute a fair recruitment process, whilst ensuring qualified disabled candidates are considered equally. Businesses are to strive for an inclusive workforce with at least 5% of persons with disabilities. Every employer is obligated to abide by this provision and ensure its implementation. This does not encourage employers to recruit persons with disabilities just to satisfy the legal quota requirements while offering them limited development opportunities.

Access to Goods, Services and Facilities

The Disability Act forbids a person who provides goods or services, or makes facilities available whether for a payment or not from discriminating against a person with disability by refusing to provide those goods or services or make those facilities available, by the terms or conditions on which the provider provides those goods and services or makes those?facilities available, or by the manner in which the provider provides those goods or services or makes those facilities available to them. A person with a disability should be respected and treated with integrity and empathy; they should be given the same prompt response as other customers without disabilities.

?

HOW CAN YOUR BUSINESS BENEFIT?

1.??? A Wider Talent Pool:?By creating an inclusive work environment, your business is open to a broader range of qualified candidates, fostering innovation and diversity within your team.

2.??? ?Positive Brand Image:?Demonstrating your commitment to social responsibility through compliance with the Disability Act enhances your brand image and attracts customers who value diversity and inclusion.

3.??? A More Engaged Workforce:?Creating a workplace that respects and accommodates everyone leads to a more positive and productive work environment for all employees.

4.??? Enhanced profit margins: Research shows that companies leading in disability inclusion have outperformed their competitors financially.

5.??? Enhanced creativity and innovation: Employees with disabilities often bring distinct viewpoints and life experiences to the workplace, which can result in fresh and sometimes peculiar approaches to problem-solving.

?

ACTIONS YOUR BUSINESS CAN TAKE

1.??? Conduct an accessibility audit of your workplace and make necessary modifications.

2.??? Review your recruitment practices to ensure they are fair and inclusive.

3.??? Provide training for your staff on disability awareness and inclusion.

4.??? Leverage technology for inclusion in your business.

5.??? Develop policies that protect persons with disabilities in your organisation.

6.??? Provide career development opportunities for employees with disabilities.

?

By guaranteeing both structural and physical accessibility, giving special consideration to the accommodation needs of people with disabilities, offering equitable and fair employment opportunities, and granting access to products, services, and facilities, your company will not only be fulfilling a requirement but also utilising a talented workforce that has not yet been fully utilised, which will be extremely advantageous to you. A commitment to disability inclusion necessitates ongoing development through evaluation of plans and programs as the company expands.

For more information and support, contact us at [email protected]

Download the Disability Inclusion Toolkit

Download the toolkit with over 100 checklist to guide your business through this transitional phase.

Download