The High-level Meetings of the 68th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, attended by the President of Mongolia, started with a discussion on disabilities and development in New York on September 23rd.

 This is the first time that the UN has raised disability issues in the high-level meetings in its history.

Almost one billion people in the world’s seven billion population have a disability. Compared to the general population, disabled people are still struggle to find a job and cannot access health care and education. The truth is that these disabled people are just forgotten in many countries.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon noted in his opening speech for the high-level meeting that “over 80 percent of the billion disabled people are in poverty as they are not provided with fair opportunities in their community even though they are of working age. This is a large number. Many people are in poverty, separated from the community.”

Statistic analysis shows that 80 percent of one billion people with disabilities live in developing countries.

According to a study by the International Labor Organization, GDP in those developing countries will rise by 7 percent if the countries provide opportunities to its people with disabilities, involving them in social life.

Ban Ki-moon said that “We have gathered here to break barriers and open doors to people with disabilities today.”

He also remarked on the significance of disability issues and the need to keep focusing on them in the agenda even though the Millennium Development Goals that were designed to create a milestone in global and national development are to expire in 2015.

The UN adopted the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2006 but there are several countries which have not joined the convention.

World leaders of over 70 countries, including the President of Mongolia, Ts.Elbegdorj, promised to break the barriers around the one billion people with disabilities providing them with fair opportunities to live, learn and work like the general population.

The memorandum was signed at the end of the high level meeting stating; “Hereby, the leaders and heads of governments are gathering at the Headquarters of the UN on September 23rd, 2013 and confirm to the world community to co-operate in order to protect the rights of people with disabilities and provide opportunities to them to develop themselves.”

A number of people with disabilities including singer Steve Wander attended the meeting to add their voice.