Office of the commissioner for fundamental rights of hungary

Directorate-General for Disability

Disability Advisory Board

It is defined as a fundamental obligation in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) that persons with disabilities should be actively involved in the decision-making procedures aimed at the implementation of CRPD through their representative bodies. Civil society does not only mean the advocacy organizations of persons with disabilities but it is a broader circle representing social diversity, which encompasses scientific, religious, legal and medical organisations working for the interest of persons with disabilities, as well as the representatives of other expert bodies, associations and foundations.

It is also stipulated by Act CXI of 2011 (the CFR Act) that the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights shall ensure the performance of the tasks of the Independent Monitoring Mechanism by involving civil society, especially persons with disabilities and the organisations representing them and at the same time, shall define the frameworks for consultation with civil society. Pursuant to the CFR Act, the Disability Advisory Board, which supports the work of the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights, and which consists of experts with outstanding theoretical knowledge or practical experience in the field related to the rights of persons with disabilities, as well as the delegates of organisations representing persons with disabilities, is a forum representing the diversity of civil society.

The independence of the Advisory Board is ensured by the rules on the conflict of interests of the members and the definition of the frameworks of operating as a body in a normative instruction, which should be displayed on the homepage of the Office, along with the decisions adopted at the meetings.   

The Advisory Board consists of members who have been invited, or selected on the basis of a tender.

The Advisory Board shall monitor and comment on the draft laws on disability, as well as the preparation and implementation of the National Disability Programme as a comprehensive strategic document on disability and the related Action Plans, as well as the relevant reports. It formulates proposals and recommendations for the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights on initiating government actions and programmes concerning persons with disabilities, with a view to enforcing the rights arising from the Convention.