A woman wearing sunglasses holds a sign that reads, in Portuguese, “ + Oportunidades - Caridade” (or “more opportunities, less charity” in English) with her arms interlocked with two other women who are participating in a parade.

Nothing Without Us: USAID Disability Policy 2024

The goal of this policy is to empower and elevate the lives of persons with disabilities in partner countries by supporting USAID and our partners to recognize, respect, value, meaningfully engage, include, and be intentional in supporting persons with disabilities and their representative organizations to benefit equitably from our work as equal partners.
 

In 1997, USAID became one of the first bilateral development agencies in the world to adopt a policy on disability to guide the Agency’s efforts toward disability inclusion. Now, USAID has convened stakeholders, development practitioners, and community members around the world to inform an updated policy aimed at further advancing disability-inclusive development.

The 2024 “Nothing Without Us: USAID Disability Policy” responds to stakeholder feedback, updates promising practices, places the Agency’s work within the current global context, and situates USAID to fulfill its long-standing commitment to nondiscrimination and inclusion of persons with disabilities in society on an equitable basis with others. The policy also positions USAID to partner with persons with disabilities in meeting the myriad challenges and opportunities of the 21st century.

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Cover 2024 USAID Disability Policy

Accessible versions of the 2024 USAID Disability Policy

Video with International Sign interpretation and open captioning

Video with audio description and open captioning

Descriptive transcript of audio-described USAID Disability Policy video

Principles

These seven operating principles will help guide implementation of the policy in USAID programs globally.

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icon symbolizing accessibility showing braille, a wheelchair user, and sign language interpretation
Accessibility: To ensure
equitable participation in
activities by persons with
disabilities.
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icon symbolizing accountability showing a magnifying glass
Accountability: Achieving the
objectivesof this policy is a shared
Agency responsibility, and dependson
the contributions of us all.
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icon symbolizing anti-ableism showing the word ableism in the middle of a no symbol
Anti-ableism: Respecting
persons with disabilities as
a natural part of human
diversity, and countering
ableist norms of what is
“normal” or “typical.”
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icon symbolizing do no more harm showing a shield
Do No (More) Harm: 
Avoiding putting program
participants at risk, and
addressing past harms
that may have occurred.
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icon symbolizing gender equality showing female, male, and non binary symbols around an equals sign
Gender Equality: Meaning
that women and girls, men
and boys, and gender-diverse
persons with disabilities can
meaningfully contribute to
and participate in their
societies with dignity.
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icon symbolizing nondiscrimination showing a pair of scales
Nondiscrimination: 
A basic foundation of
USAID’s inclusive
development approach,
we ​​​​encourage all partners
to work to end discrimination 
and promote equity for
persons with disabilities.
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icon symbolizing nothing without us showing a group of people encircled by arrows and a check mark
Nothing Without Us: 
The meaningful engagement
of persons with disabilities
in all aspects and stages
of programming, policies,
or actions.
Tags
Disabilities disability assistance