On 11-12 December 2018, EIFL participated in the first national workshop in Cambodia to design a National Disability Strategic Plan (NDSP) 2019-2023. The new plan, that aims to ensure inclusiveness and equality for people living with disabilities, extends for another four years the existing plan (2014-2018) that has benefited around 10,000 people.

Following the two-day workshop, that brought together the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), development partners, civil society, persons with disabilities and the private sector, it was decided to include ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty for persons with print disabilities in the plan’s Objective 8 “accessibility and access to information”.

During the event, H.E. Em Chan Makara, Secretary General of the Disability Action Council expressed interest in moving forward quickly with Cambodia’s ratification through a dedicated workshop. Participants also raised important issues such as the application of the Marrakesh Treaty to software, and the scope of beneficiaries in the treaty.

The discussions on Marrakesh were led by Kazuyuki Uji, Policy Specialist at UNDP and Wanna Net, EIFL’s Copyright Coordinator in Cambodia. Kazuyuki explained how the treaty provides an effective legal framework to address multiple development issues, such as education, poverty and employment, while Wanna set out the key benefits of the treaty and the new opportunities for libraries to increase access to books in accessible formats for people in Cambodia (click here for Wanna’s presentation in English, and here in Khmer).

EIFL welcomes the proposal to include the Marrakesh Treaty in the 2019-2023 Strategic Plan, and looks forward to working with stakeholders so that Cambodia can take its place among the 75 other countries that have joined the treaty.

Find out more

For more information on the Marrakesh Treaty in Cambodia, see the Issue Brief prepared by UNDP in partnership with EIFL, the World Blind Union and the Association of the Blind in Cambodia in English and in Khmer.

Find out more about EIFL’s support for ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty in partner countries and implementation of the treaty into national law.