International Day of Persons with Disabilities 2021
Disability inclusion is an essential condition to upholding human rights, sustainable development, and peace and security. It is also central to the promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to leave no one behind. The commitment to realizing the rights of persons with disabilities is not only a matter of justice; it is an investment in a common future.
The global crisis of COVID-19 is deepening pre-existing inequalities, exposing the extent of exclusion and highlighting that work on disability inclusion is imperative. People with disabilitiesโone billion peopleโ are one of the most excluded groups in our society and are among the hardest hit in this crisis in terms of fatalities. Even under normal circumstances, persons with disabilities are less likely to access health care, education, employment and to participate in the community. An integrated approach is required to ensure that persons with disabilities are not left behind. Disability inclusion will result in a COVID-19 response and recovery that better serves everyone, more fully suppressing the virus, as well as building back better. It will provide for more agile systems capable of responding to complex situations, reaching the furthest behind first.
Since its inception in December 2014, the partnership between EFDN and Special Olympics has been all about making football accessible to everyone. This includes creating opportunities for athletes with and without intellectual disabilities across Europe.
Below is a collection of how several EFDN members and European football organisations marked the day.
AEK Athens F.C.
UEFA Foundation
Werder Bremen
Inter Campus
Everton in the Community
SL Benfica
Burnley FC
N.E.C. Nijmegen
Luc te Riele, Manager N.E.C. in the Community and Henri Bakhuis, coordinator within one of the 9 participating football clubs at N.E.C. Nijmegenwill presented their Special Football Programme at the 16th EFDN Conference. They focused on the topic of the gap between regular and disabled football, highlighted the collaboration between N.E.C. and the Dutch Football Federation (KNVB), the development from a N.E.C. project to a self-steering partnership, and their Core Values in the daily practice. Newly promoted EFDN member N.E.C. Nijmegen will not only play in the Eredivisie next season, but also in the Special Eredivisie or Bijzondere Eredivsie as the league is called in Dutch. In this competition for children with a disability N.E.C. will compete with teams representing Ajax, SC Heerenveen, FC Utrecht and Go Ahead Eagles among others. Their youngsters also participated in the first edition of the EFDN Special Champions League which took place on Saturday, 6th of November in Breda. The EFDN Special Champions League is a new project of EFDN that will provide a safe, inclusive, and active environment where young people between 10 and 18 years old with an intellectual disability can come together and play football at a level, they are all comfortable with.
You can download the presentation here.
