In October 2026, two new government working groups on disability met in Nigeria for the first time. Together with this year’s plans for inclusive education, they put disability higher on the national agenda. What families need now is for those plans to reach their homes and schools.
Two new working groups
On 21 October, the National Human Rights Commission held the first meeting of a Disability Inclusion Technical Working Group, co-chaired by the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD). Its focus is putting the African Disability Protocol into practice. Nigeria ratified the protocol in October 2023. Voice of Nigeria reported the meeting.
A week later, on 28 October, NCPWD and the federal trade ministry set up a working group to include disabled people in trade programmes, Leadership reported. NCPWD was set up under the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act 2018.
Schools and early identification
In late July, the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) launched national standards for inclusive education and a Functional Difficulty Early Identification Tool, to help find children who may need extra support. Not everyone was convinced: one advocacy group of blind people called the measures “paper promises”, Inclusive News reported.
In April, the federal government said it aims to enrol 2 million children with disabilities in school, adapt 10,000 schools and train 100,000 teachers. We have not found published details of how this will be funded.
What this could mean in Ogbomoso
Early identification matters because the sooner a family understands their child’s needs, the sooner the child can get the right care and a place in school. Many children are still missing out, as we wrote in why children with disabilities in Nigeria are being left behind.
That is the work The Bridge has started in Ogbomoso: assessments, practical training for parents and carers, and links with local hospitals. We will follow how these national plans reach Oyo State, and keep speaking up for the families we work with.