Good morning, colleagues, partners, and friends!

On behalf of the United Nations Development Programme, I welcome you to the Forum of Pilot Initiatives on Sustainable Development Goals. 

Today, on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, we are here to discuss challenges, solutions, and specific success stories.

This is an issue close to all of us. There are about half a million people with disabilities living in Belarus. According to the Institute of Sociology of the National Academy of Sciences, more than half the population has a personal connection to disability through relatives, friends, or colleagues. 

This international day reminds us that equal opportunities are not a privilege, but a right for everyone.

Worldwide, more than a billion people continue to face barriers — both obvious and hidden — in education, healthcare, employment, transportation, the digital environment, and public life. These barriers do not arise from disability itself, but from systems and attitudes that do not take into account human dignity and potential. 

The task of the United Nations Development Programme is to help countries remove these barriers. The UN Strategy and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities form the basis of all our projects.

Together with ministries, local authorities, civil society organizations, and businesses, we are working to translate the principles of the Convention into practice. 

Today, we will review the results of pilot initiatives implemented this year in collaboration with local authorities and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus. I would also like to thank the Russian Federation for its financial support of these initiatives.

Behind every initiative are real people and real change. These projects cover the entire country, demonstrating a variety of approaches and opportunities. 

A highlight of the Forum’s agenda is an adaptive clothing collection created in partnership with the Bellegprom Concern.

This is not just about fashion; it is about respect, comfort, confidence, and independence. The collection was developed with the needs of wheelchair users in mind, proving that design can be inclusive and business can be socially responsible.

Colleagues, I want to emphasize that inclusion and equal opportunities are our shared responsibility. 

Our response must be based on bold collective action and our shared values of solidarity, human rights, and multilateral cooperation.

Thank you.