Nigeria

Nigeria 

At a glance

• Nigeria’s Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities Act (2018) outlaws discrimination against disabled people in areas including employment, physical accessibility, and provision of goods and services.  

• Nigeria has both signed and ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). 

Key stats

• The World Health Organisation estimated in 2018 that 29 million people had a disability, out of 195 million people. This is roughly 14.9 per cent of the population. 

• 6.9 per cent of adults aged over 15 had a ‘functional difficulty,’ according to the 2018 General Household Survey Panel. 

• 38 per cent of people with ‘a lot’ of ‘functional difficulty’ are in employment, compared with 62 per cent of people with no difficulty (2018 General Household Survey Panel). 

The law

• Disability legislation: 
  • Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities Act (2018) – This law seeks to enact the principles of the CRPD into domestic Nigerian law. It states that “a person with disability shall not be discriminated against on the ground of his disability by any person or institution in any manner or circumstance.” It creates a number of obligations on employers and providers of goods and services to remove barriers and provide adjustments for disabled people. The Act also entitles disabled individuals to punitive damages for breaches of their rights. 
  • State laws – Nigeria is a federal country. Some states have enacted their own laws on disability discrimination that apply at state level. These states include Lagos State, Ekiti State, Plateau State, Bauchi State, Nasarawa State and Kwara State. Organisations operating in Nigeria should ensure that they also comply with relevant state laws. 

• Definition of disability – The 2018 Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities Act uses the CRPD definition of disability. This defines a disability as: 
  • “A long term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairment which in interaction with various barriers may hinder full and effective participation in society.” 

Language

• Official language – The official language of Nigeria is English. However, there are three other national languages – Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba – as well as many other languages that are widely spoken. Organisations operating in Nigeria should work with local and national disability organisations to identify appropriate language to use when talking about disability. 

• Persons with disabilities – when talking about disabled individuals, it can be more acceptable to say, “persons with disabilities,” instead of “disabled people,” for example. 

• Accessibility aid – The 2018 Discrimination Act defines this as “any fixture and device that aids accessibility.” 

• Special facilities – The 2018 Discrimination Act defines this as any provision that enhances easy enjoyment in public buildings by persons with disabilities. 

Employment

• Adjustments / accommodations – The 2018 Discrimination Act does not have an explicit provision requiring employers to make adjustments or accommodations. However, it does require employers to ensure that disabled employees can work “on an equal basis with others.” This could mean making accommodations, given Nigeria’s signing of the CRPD, which requires them. 

• Quotas – The 2018 Discrimination Act requires public employers to ensure that at least 5 per cent of their posts are occupied by people with disabilities. 

Customers

• The 2018 Discrimination Act outlaws discrimination in the provision of goods and services in the following forms: 
  • Refusing to provide goods and services or to make facilities available 
  • Discriminatory terms or conditions in the provision of goods and services or facilities 
  • The manner in which the goods and services or facilities are made available. 

Built environment

• The 2018 Discrimination Act requires all government buildings, and buildings open to the public, to be constructed or modified to be accessible to disabled people. This includes retrofitting accessibility aids and other special facilities to existing buildings. Premises owners had a five-year transition period from the passage of the Act, which ended in 2023, to meet these standards. 

Digital accessibility

• There are currently no standards of digital accessibility that are required in Nigeria.  

Country-specific disability organisations

• National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) – Established by the 2018 Discrimination Act, the NCPWD promotes and protects the rights of disabled people in Nigeria. It seeks to support disabled people’s ability to participate in society through education, employment and socio-economic affairs. 
• Joint National Association of Persons with Disability – An umbrella organisation formed of six Nigerian disability groups. It seeks to represent their interests at an international level.