Resident Coordinator's speech: ASEAN Disability Forum (ADF) Conference 2025

YB Dato’ Sri Hajah Nancy Binti Shukri, Minister of Women, Family and Community Development of Malaysia

Mr. Lim Puay Tiak, Chair of ASEAN Disability Forum

Mr. Sazali Shaari, ASEAN Disability Forum Vice-Chair and Honorary Advisor, Malaysian Federation of the Deaf (MFD)

Distinguished participants, esteemed colleagues, ladies and gentlemen,

I regret that I cannot be with you in person today. As YB Dato’ Sri Hajah Nancy joins this important gathering here in Kuala Lumpur, I am representing the United Nations at another engagement in her home state of Sarawak. 

But I am very much with you in spirit—because the work you lead, the voices gathered here, and the vision you are shaping, matter profoundly.

The United Nations in Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam is honoured to support the ASEAN Disability Forum (ADF) Conference 2025. 

And if I may say, this partnership was born in a very ASEAN way, through a simple conversation, grounded in trust and shared purpose.

Three hundred and fifty-eight days ago, in a short but meaningful “doorway chat” with Tuan Sazali on the sidelines of the 2024 Human Rights Forum in Malaysia, a question emerged:

Can we, together, build a sustained national platform where persons with disabilities lead the agenda—not as beneficiaries, but as decision-makers?

That question opened more than a door, it sparked a journey.

What started as a vision for the inaugural Malaysia Disability Forum, intended for this year, has expanded far beyond our initial plans. Instead of launching a national platform, we stand today at the heart of a regional one.

From the Malaysian Federation of the Deaf being appointed host of this year’s ASEAN Disability Forum, to the UN Country Team joining as supporting partner - followed by UNDP, UNICEF and ILO, then Yayasan Sime Darby, Bursa Malaysia, Grab, Starbucks and ASTRO Awani, this conference is a testament to what happens when partnerships are anchored in inclusion.

The circle of commitment grows.

And it is fitting that we meet on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, a day rooted in dignity, equality, and universal human rights. 

These are the principles of the UN Charter, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the ASEAN Enabling Masterplan, and of course the UN Disability Inclusion Strategy (UNDIS), our internal commitment to ensure the UN becomes fully accessible, inclusive and accountable across all offices, programmes and operations. 

Here in Malaysia, the UN Country Team is advancing the Strategy to ensure we “walk the talk” on disability inclusion.

Ladies and gentlemen,

This conversation is urgent—because the world is changing, and because people with disabilities represent a powerful and significant part of our global community.

• Globally, 1.3 billion people—one in six—live with a disability.
• In ASEAN, 90 million persons with disabilities enrich our societies.
• Here in Malaysia, about 640,000 persons with disabilities are officially registered, though the real number is much higher.

These are not small communities. They are vast, diverse populations whose rights, talents and leadership must be fully recognized.

And we meet at a decisive moment.

This year, ASEAN concludes the ASEAN Enabling Masterplan 2025—a bold vision with 76 priority actions across education, employment, political participation, digital inclusion and protection from discrimination.

But this is not the end of a plan.

It is the beginning of the next one.

Your deliberations over these two days will shape a new disability-inclusive framework beyond 2025—one aligned with ASEAN Vision 2045, the CRPD, and the 2030 Agenda.

And your work resonates far beyond ASEAN.

At the regional level, we are guided by the aspirations of the Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities (2023–2032), which emphasizes leadership, representation and the full participation of persons with disabilities in all development processes. 

Its rights-based and empowerment-focused approach reinforces the work we are undertaking here in Southeast Asia—and reminds us that disability inclusion is a shared regional priority across the wider Asia-Pacific.

At the global level, as the world now moves to implement the United Nations Pact for the Future, the message is clear:

Persons with disabilities must not only be included, but they must also be at the centre of the future of multilateralism.

Your voices can shape global commitments.
Your ideas can strengthen global accountability.
Your leadership can influence the “future we want.”

Colleagues,

The panels you will engage in - on climate resilience, economic empowerment, gender equality, private sector and youth leadership are not mere programme items. 

They are the future entry points for a stronger, more ambitious ASEAN disability inclusion agenda.

Each theme reminds us of a fundamental truth:

Inclusion is not an add-on—it is the foundation of progress.
Accessibility is not charity—it is a right.
And persons with disabilities are not stakeholders to be consulted at the end—they are partners from the start.

Let this conference be a turning point.
Let it spark deeper cross-border collaboration among organizations of persons with disabilities.
Let it strengthen trust among governments, the private sector, human rights institutions and the UN.
Let it inspire us to widen the doors of opportunity, dismantle visible and invisible barriers, and build societies where every person can contribute fully.

And in that spirit, allow me to share one important development:

In 2026, the United Nations in Malaysia will launch our new Civil Society Engagement Platform, a structured national mechanism for dialogue, participation and policy input.

A dedicated Disability Subgroup, led jointly with organizations of persons with disabilities, will be a central part of this platform. This is our commitment to ensuring that OPDs are not only consulted but embedded in shaping Malaysia’s development priorities.

Ladies and gentlemen,

We often say, “leave no one behind.”
But this cannot remain a slogan.

It must guide budgets.
Shape policies.
Inform technologies.
Transform social norms.

The future of ASEAN—and the future of Malaysia—is more prosperous, peaceful and just when persons with disabilities lead the way.

So, I urge you:

Bring your boldest ideas.
Challenge old assumptions.
Push us - push the UN, push your governments, push your private-sector partners—to do better.

Together, let us build an ASEAN Community, and a Malaysia, where inclusion is not negotiated—it is guaranteed.

Where accessibility is not optional, it is universal.

And where every person—of every ability—has the full opportunity to live, to participate, and to thrive.

To all participants, partners and sponsors from Malaysia, I also invite you to join us in developing the inaugural Malaysia Disability Forum in 2026, so that we can build on the momentum created here, deepen national engagement, and strengthen Malaysia’s leadership in disability inclusion.

Thank you, and I wish you a powerful, collaborative, and inspiring Conference.