Flying OPD (organisations of persons with disabilities) leaders from districts across the country to Cox’s Bazar for a learning exchange and future-planning workshop has opened a new horizon for disability rights leadership in Bangladesh.
The three-day leadership and planning workshop began on Monday.
The program was organised by Action on Disability and Development (ADD) International, in partnership with FCDO/UK Aid.
Until now, the idea of grassroots disability rights leaders travelling by air had been almost unimaginable. But on Monday afternoon, that long-held dream became a reality as leaders boarded a flight to take part in the event.
The initiative, described by organisers as a “confidence-building milestone,” sought to strengthen OPD leadership, amplify local voices and chart an inclusive action plan for 2025.
Opening the workshop, Golam Faruk Hamim, Bangladesh Program Team Lead at ADD International, said the experience was designed to challenge both systemic barriers and personal limitations.
“Inclusive development is impossible if people with disabilities are not given real opportunities,” he said. “For many, this was the first time boarding a plane. The journey boosted their confidence and reminded them that they belong here too. Sometimes, all that’s needed is to open the door.”
Hamim noted that the workshop focused on leadership development, knowledge exchange, and building a participatory roadmap for next year.
“We want disability voices to be among the strongest and most consistent in national policymaking.”
Despite the existence of the 2006 Disability Welfare Act and the 2013 Rights and Protection of Persons with Disabilities Act, participants said enforcement remains alarmingly weak, leaving many rights to exist only on paper.
Mohammad Zahidul Islam, an OPD leader, said: “There are laws, but little enforcement. Whether it is education, healthcare, employment or social protection—we do not get equal access. Without stronger government oversight, things will not change.”
Another participant, Shadhona Bala, added: “If the laws were implemented locally, discrimination would reduce significantly. But at service points, inequality is still visible every day.”
For many OPD leaders, women, men and young people this was their first-ever flight. Several spoke about how the experience shifted their self-perception.
A woman representative from Tarash upazila, Sirajganj said: “I never imagined I would travel by air. Today, I feel like I can, that I am capable, that my limitations are not stronger than my dreams.”
According to ADD International, the flight was more than a mode of transport; it was a deliberate confidence-building intervention.
Across multiple workshop sessions, participants shared lived experiences that paint a stark picture of structural inequality:
- Harassment and delays when seeking government services
- Limited employment opportunities
- Poor accessibility in public and private institutions
- Extra humanitarian pressure in Rohingya-hosting areas
- Lack of assistive support in schools and hospitals
- Gatekeeping and middlemen when accessing disability allowances
Women and children with disabilities were said to face even harsher realities.
At the opening day of the workshop, OPD representatives presented a unified set of demands:
- Stronger national monitoring to enforce the 2006 and 2013 disability laws
- Regular policy dialogues between OPDs and district administrations
- Specialised support mechanisms for women, children and remote-area persons with disabilities
- Priority employment quotas across government and private sectors
- Mandatory accessibility in schools, hospitals and public buildings
- Expansion and capacity-building of OPD networks
Participants stressed that inclusive development projects must require direct consultation with OPDs to reflect real needs on the ground.
ADD International framed the event as part of a long-term strategy to shift disability rights work from tokenistic inclusion toward genuine leadership.
“This is more than a workshop—it’s about transforming how disability leadership is nurtured,” organisers said. “From policy tables to local communities, meaningful participation must be the norm.”
They expressed hope that the confidence, skills, and solidarity built at Cox’s Bazar would strengt the disability rights movement nationwide.
