By Abbas Nazil
SAnews reports that climate change is increasingly endangering people with disabilities across South Africa, as severe weather events expose them to disproportionate risks.
The Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities emphasized that persons with disabilities face heightened vulnerability to extreme weather due to physical, social, economic, and institutional barriers that limit their ability to prepare for, respond to, and recover from climate-related emergencies.
Recent storms, heavy rainfall, and flooding across Limpopo, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, and North West highlighted these vulnerabilities, resulting in fatalities, displacement, and destruction of infrastructure and homes.
In Mpumalanga alone, 20 people died and over 1,300 houses, roads, and public facilities were damaged, while Limpopo reported 18 fatalities.
The department warned that disasters like these affect people with disabilities more severely because they often face barriers to mobility, communication, and accessing emergency services, making evacuation and survival more difficult.
It highlighted that climate change amplifies these challenges by increasing the frequency and intensity of storms, floods, droughts, and heatwaves, creating conditions that exacerbate existing inequalities.
Persons with disabilities may also experience disruptions in healthcare, assistive devices, and social support networks, further raising the risk of injury, illness, or death during extreme weather events.
The department noted that climate-related disruptions extend beyond immediate physical threats, affecting livelihoods, education, and access to essential services, making recovery especially difficult for disabled communities.
South Africa’s recent National Disaster declaration under the Disaster Management Act underscores the urgent need for targeted policies and inclusive disaster planning that account for the needs of disabled citizens.
Officials stressed that international obligations, including Article 11 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, require states to protect persons with disabilities during natural disasters and emergencies.
Excluding disabled individuals from climate action and disaster planning perpetuates systemic inequality and undermines social resilience.
The department urged that climate justice must include disability justice, calling for accessible early-warning systems, inclusive emergency response measures, and full participation of persons with disabilities in disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation planning.
Building a climate-resilient South Africa, the department stated, requires safeguarding the rights, dignity, and safety of all citizens, particularly those whose vulnerabilities are magnified by climate change.
Without deliberate attention to the intersection of disability and climate impacts, disabled communities will continue to bear the brunt of environmental hazards, highlighting the urgent need for inclusive and equitable climate policies.
