Almost 20 years ago, the UK government signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. This week, the confirmed cuts to Overseas Development Aid signal a devastating blow to some of the world’s most marginalised people, including people with disabilities. Less money will mean less access to health services, less access to vital medicines, less access to education and economic opportunities as well as vital humanitarian assistance. To some it will be a matter of life and death.
CBM UK highlights the impact of the government’s cuts to overseas aid on people with disabilities
Posted on:
Friday, March 20th, 2026
Mark Barrell, Director of Advocacy at CBM UK said: “The primary purpose of UK aid is to reduce poverty, yet these deep cuts – including a 56% reduction in funding to Africa and 21% to humanitarian assistance – will hit the world’s most marginalised hardest. The Government’s own Equality Impact Assessment acknowledges that children, people with disabilities and older people in some of the poorest places, and who are most vulnerable to shocks, will bear a greater burden. As the human cost of these cuts becomes visible, the UK must recommit to placing people with disabilities at the centre of all development efforts – something we at CBM UK are proud to already be doing.”
At CBM UK partnerships with people with disabilities and their representative organisations are core to achieving lasting, sustainable change. Whether that’s inclusive education for girls in Zimbabwe, climate resilient farming in Kenya, or financial inclusion for women in Nepal we’re putting power in the hands of people with disabilities. We want to see the UK honour its commitments and keep the promises it made to these communities, ensuring no one is excluded.
CBM’s partner-led, localised approach is already achieving change. We’re in the right place to deliver what the UK government says it seeks to do. We know how to work in partnership effectively, and how change happens when we listen to those who know the solutions that are needed.
As the human cost of these cuts takes effect, it’s never been more important to listen carefully, design inclusively and work collaboratively to reach as many people as possible. We’re more powerful when we act together.
Read more about our approach to localisation and partnership
Photo: CBM/Rakotoarivony
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