Women with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific

VENUS ILAGAN, originally from the Philippines, is the immediate past Secretary General of Rehabilitation International (October 2008-May 2019) - the first person with a disability from a developing country to serve in that capacity in the organization’s ninety-seven-year history. She was the first woman World Chairperson of Disabled People’s International. Prior to joining RI, Venus was the project manager of a national rehabilitation program which provided services to over 14,000 children with disabilities in the Philippines. She had the distinction of having been a member of the Editorial Committee for the first ever World Report on Disability – a joint initiative of the World Health Organization and the World Bank. It established that there were one billion persons with disabilities in the world in 2011 when the report was launched which was instrumental in having over a hundred countries sign and ratify the disability convention within a very short period of time. Venus participated very actively in the elaboration of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities now ratified by 177 countries. Venus is a passionate global advocate for gender equality specifically in the context of Women with Disabilities.