Smitha Sadasivan

I am a self-advocate for cross disability rights and inclusive health rights in India for the past 19 years. I advocate towards the formulation of rights-based policies and programs for persons with disabilities by the government and implementing them, sensitizing multi-stakeholders on the rights of persons with disabilities, facilitating free legal aid to persons with Disabilities, conducting access audits, evolving community support structures towards independent living of Persons with Disabilities and partnering with governments to evolve accessible and inclusive solutions for all. I carry out different roles such as Member of Tamilnadu State Advisory Board for Persons with Disabilities, Inclusive Health Policy Advisor for Disability Rights India Foundation, Member, the Indian Forum for Rehabilitation and Assistive Technology, National Committee for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (NCRPD) facilitated by NCPEDP - New Delhi, Lead Facilitator for Trust Enabled Decisions and Support Systems at Vidya Sagar Chennai, Civil Society Representative for the Global South on the UHC2030, Member of Advisory Group at Civil Society Engagement Mechanism (CSEM) for UHC2030, Advisory Group Member at Civil Society Alliance for Human Rights on Pandemic Treaty etc. I am an Mphil in Psychology, and a person with lived experiences in Multiple Sclerosis for past 23 years, serving as an integral part of Multiple Sclerosis Society of India, Chennai Chapter. With regard to inclusive health domain, I spearheaded the UHC4India Campaign making a collective voice of underrepresented communities for health equity in India, advocated for WHA Resolution on Highest Attainable Standards of Health for Persons with Disabilities as part of IDDC Taskforce initiatives, and collaborated with Department for the Welfare of Differently Abled persons and Greater Chennai Corporation in enabling doorstep vaccination for people with disabilities and rare diseases in Chennai during COVID pandemic. I spoke at the Multi-stakeholder hearings at the UN Headquarters at New York in May 2023, about the need for inclusion of persons with disabilities across the globe in Universal Health Coverage and Pandemic Prevention Preparedness and Response, on the lead up to UN HLMs.