While global disability rights movements continue to push for inclusion and accessibility, the spotlight often shines on wealthier or more prominent nations. But what about the smaller, quieter places—the countries that rarely make headlines? In these corners of the world, people with disabilities face a double marginalization: excluded within their societies and overlooked on the international stage.

Africa: Advocacy Without Infrastructure

In Lesotho, a landlocked nation surrounded by South Africa, disability access is practically nonexistent outside urban centers. Advocates have called for better integration of disabled children into schools, but with limited resources, progress is slow. Similarly, Eswatini—with high rates of HIV—grapples with disability compounded by stigma. Disability is often seen as shameful, a cultural barrier that undercuts policy progress.

In The Gambia, legislation exists to support disabled citizens, but implementation lags. Activists point out that government programs often fall short on funding and rarely involve people with disabilities in decision-making.

Asia & Pacific: Natural Beauty, Hidden Barriers

In Bhutan, a country famous for valuing happiness over GDP, mental health and disability services are only just beginning to take shape. Accessibility is minimal in mountainous regions, and social stigma remains deeply rooted. Meanwhile, Timor-Leste, one of Asia’s newest nations, is still building its public health and education systems. People with disabilities are often left out of those foundational conversations.

Vanuatu, a Pacific island nation frequently hit by cyclones, faces a different challenge: disability-inclusive disaster response. After Cyclone Pam in 2015, reports surfaced of deaf and blind individuals left without assistance or emergency information. Recent grassroots efforts aim to change this—but progress is slow, especially in remote islands.

Latin America & the Caribbean: Culture and Climate Collide

In Dominica, back-to-back hurricanes devastated infrastructure, and rebuilding has not been disability-friendly. Wheelchair users, for example, struggle to access shelters, clinics, and public offices. Advocacy groups have been pushing for inclusive urban planning, but funding remains a roadblock.

Suriname and Belize share another common issue: the invisibility of rural and Indigenous disabled people. In both countries, government data on disability is scarce, making it nearly impossible to design effective programs. Most support comes from underfunded NGOs, and even basic mobility aids are hard to find in outlying areas.

Europe: Forgotten Within the Developed World

Despite being part of the EU, Malta struggles with day-to-day accessibility. Public buses, sidewalks, and schools frequently fall short of EU disability standards. While laws exist, their enforcement is spotty, and physical infrastructure remains outdated.

Kosovo, still healing from war, has its own unique challenges. Many war survivors live with disabilities—physical and psychological—but lack long-term support. Inclusive education and employment programs exist mostly in pilot stages.

In Montenegro, the government has promoted inclusive policies, especially in education. However, cultural stigma still influences hiring practices, and disabled people often report discrimination in the workplace and healthcare settings.

A Pattern of Exclusion

Across these nations, common themes emerge: lack of reliable data, weak enforcement of disability laws, social stigma, and inaccessible environments. Whether it’s a child in Bhutan who can’t get to school, a hurricane survivor in Dominica left without shelter access, or an aging war veteran in Kosovo, the end result is the same—people with disabilities being left out of systems designed without them in mind.

These aren’t isolated incidents. They reflect systemic patterns of neglect and underreporting. The international media’s silence only deepens the problem. By spotlighting these stories together, we can begin to understand that disability justice isn’t just a local or national issue—it’s global.

My Thoughts

On education in Lesotho, Eswatini, and The Gambia:

Education access is one of the hardest challenges when it comes to disability because every student learns differently and requires their own unique accommodations. That said, the first and simplest step is making classrooms physically accessible—things like ramps or modified entryways. Even if these solutions are built from low-cost materials, they’re still a meaningful start. You can’t solve every individual learning need at once, but you can at least open the door for disabled students to enter the room.

On Bhutan’s image and reality:

It’s hard to understand how a country can be seen as one of the “happiest” when mental health isn’t openly talked about or properly supported. How can you measure happiness if whole communities—especially people with disabilities—aren’t part of the conversation? If Bhutan wants to live up to its vision of Gross National Happiness, it needs to include disability and mental health in both policy and culture. Real happiness can’t exist without everyone being seen, supported, and heard.

On Timor-Leste and inclusive foundations:

Because Timor-Leste is still building its systems from the ground up, it has a unique opportunity to make accessibility a foundational priority—not an afterthought. Including people with disabilities in early development conversations means the country can directly hear what they need and want. With millions worldwide living with disabilities, this young nation could lead by example, showing how accessibility can be integrated right from a country’s conception, paving the way for others to follow.

On natural disaster response in island nations:

I don’t live on an island or in a place where natural disasters happen all the time, so I can’t fully understand what that experience is like. But I do know that when crisis hits, people with disabilities are often the most at risk—and the most overlooked. That’s why it’s important for those communities to be part of the planning from the beginning. I may not have the full answer, but I believe the people who live in these areas do, and we should be creating space to hear from them, not speaking over them.

On employment and young disabled voices in Europe:

Employers should see hiring people with disabilities not as charity, but as a smart move—disabled people often bring fresh perspectives that business owners haven’t even considered. Especially younger generations—they’ve had to navigate barriers their whole lives. That means they’ve become natural problem-solvers, because without that skill, they wouldn’t be able to thrive. We need to stop seeing disability as a limitation and start seeing it as an asset.

On international support:

International organizations and wealthier countries shouldn’t just offer financial support—they should also provide a general framework of accessibility that other nations can adapt. Right now, we don’t have a true global accessibility standard, and that’s part of the problem. If we created one, it could give countries—especially smaller or newer ones—a foundation to build from, while still leaving room for cultural adaptation. Accessibility shouldn’t be random or optional; it should be a global expectation.

A Question to Consider

How can we ask the global community and bigger nations to help smaller nations succeed in accessibility and disability advocacy—not just in funding but in attention, inclusion, and empowerment?

Sources

    1.    Eswatini University Steps Up Inclusion Efforts – VOA News (https://www.voanews.com/a/eswatini-university-steps-up-inclusion-efforts-with-the-opening-of-disability-support-center-/7827379.html)

    2.    Disability Certificate: A Missed Step in Bhutan’s Inclusion Agenda – Asia News Network (https://asianews.network/disability-certificate-a-missed-step-in-bhutans-inclusion-agenda/)

    3.    Montenegro Implements WHO Disability Guide – WHO (https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/montenegro--the-first-country-in-the-european-region-to-implement-the-who-disability-guide-for-action)