Introduction

In New Zealand, there are several frameworks that set out priority strategies to address the barriers disabled people experience.

1. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) - this is a United Nations treaty that the Government ratified in 2008. The CRPD is the most comprehensive global tool that outlines the human rights of disabled people.
2. New Zealand Disability Strategy - published in 2001, it sets out a vision of an enabling society and has 15 objectives to achieve that vision. The Strategy reinforces what needs to be done to ensure disabled people have the same opportunities as everyone else.
3. Disability Action Plan 2014-2018 – brings together key priorities and actions that require cross-agency collaboration. The Disability Action Plan provides more detailed, shorter-term planning on priority issues.

These frameworks are supported by several governance, monitoring and coordination mechanisms:

• Ministerial Committee on Disability Issues
• Chief Executives’ Group on Disability Issues
• Senior Officials’ Group on Disability Issues
• Independent Monitoring Mechanism
• Disability Action Plan governance mechanism
• Joint Disabled People’s Organisation (DPO) and government agency governance meetings – Chief Executives’ Group on Disability Issues, senior officials and the DPOs meet together quarterly to oversee progress

The relationship between these mechanisms is illustrated in Appendix one.

Every year, the Minister for Disability Issues reports to Parliament on progress with implementing the New Zealand Disability Strategy. In recent years, the annual report has also included reporting against progress with implementing the CRPD and the Disability Action Plan.

This annual report has three broad sections:

1. Key achievements in 2015.
2. Progress against the Disability Action Plan 2014-2018.
3. Looking forward to 2016 and beyond.

Section two of this annual report focuses on the Disability Action Plan and includes reporting on actions being progressed under each of the four shared result areas. It also includes reporting on other actions relevant to the result area, even if they are not directly included in the Disability Action Plan. This is because it helps to identify the connections between the Disability Action Plan and other areas of work.