“One billion people – 15 per cent of the world’s population – are persons with disabilities， and their rights cannot be ignored，” a group of United Nations human rights experts said today， as they urged negotiators and UN Member States to include rights of such persons in the new development framework.

The call came as the second session of negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda closes this week in New York.

The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food， Hilal Elver， drew attention to the issue of food security.

Worldwide， an estimated 805 million people are chronically undernourished. Since many persons with disabilities live in absolute poverty， these two large populations overlap to a considerable extent， making food security of utmost importance.

States are particularly responsible for making sure that vulnerable and marginalised people， including those with disabilities， are able to access adequate and nutritious food， she said.

The UN Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons， Rosa Kornfeld-Matte， called on Member States to give particular attention to the situation of older persons with disabilities in the current negotiations.

The independent experts are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures， the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system， is the general name of the Human Rights Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world.

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