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Progress In Implementing The NZ Disability Strategy 2003

The third progress report on implementation of the NZ Disability Strategy covers 37 government departments that submitted work plans for the period July2002 to June 2003. Under the NZ Public Health and Disability Act 2000, the Minister for Disability Issues is required to report to Parliament by the end of each calendar year on progress in implementing the NZ Disability Strategy.

Key points about the third progress report:

• This is the first time the progress report covers a whole twelve month period and all Public Service departments.
• The first and second progress reports only reported on the activity of 10 key departments, for periods of three months and nine months respectively.
• The report was collated from information supplied by the departments. For 27 of the 37 departments, it was the first time they had provided progress reports.
• All actions are now included in the report. The objectives are grouped under four headings: Rights of Citizenship; Government Capacity/Development of Support; Delivery of Support; and Specific Populations (as developed by the National Health Committee for its “To Have an Ordinary Life” report, September 2003).
• This progress report shows increased activity and a more comprehensive reporting of the objectives and actions of the NZ Disability Strategy across the whole of government.
• Departments have increased their involvement of disabled people and consultation with the disability sector in the development of service delivery and policy. For example, to determine criteria to prioritise upgrading of tracks for disabled access, the Department of Conservation sought input from disabled people into a public consultation process.
• There was greater awareness reported of agencies recognising clients and staff with disabilities. For example, the New Zealand Police undertook a survey in 2002-03 to measure disabled people’s satisfaction with Police services. A total of 213 people from the Wellington Police District were involved. Participants had a wide range of impairments, and a variety of communication tools were used to access information. Four recommendations that came out of this have been incorporated into the Police NZ Disability Strategy implementation plan for 2003-04.
• There are some actions that do not have activity reported. This does not mean there is no work occurring, but rather that no specific work was reported. For the next progress report, agencies will be asked to report on their business-as-usual work as well as specific disability project work. The Office is also developing more comprehensive reporting of implementation progress, including data collected on disabled people.
• Departments showed an increased commitment to producing information in accessible language and in a wider range of formats. This includes information on websites and an increased commitment to plain language.
  All departments are working to ensure that their websites are consistent with the e-government guidelines developed by the State Services Commission, and many reported that their websites now meet the accessibility standards.
• There was better collection and use of information (including data) about disability and disabled people. For example, Statistics New Zealand is chairing an analytical committee that aims to ensure that useful analysis is done on the 1996 and the 2001 Disability Surveys.
• An increased number of agencies reported auditing services and facilities to ensure accessibility by disabled people. For example, in 2002-03 the Ministry for Culture and Heritage advised all Crown entities under its responsibility of the need to reflect the NZ Disability Strategy in their work, in particular objective 4 “to provide opportunities in employment and economic development” and objective 6 “fostering an aware and responsive public service”. All Crown entities received a letter of expectation from their Minister requiring them to report on progress in implementing the NZ Disability Strategy.

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