The global decade (UN decade1983 - 1992) did not bring about any noticeable improvement in the quality of life of people with disabilities in Africa; only countries in the northern hemisphere appeared to have benefited from the decade whilst, through lack of political will, those in the southern hemisphere failed to implement the World Programme of Action Concerning Disabled Persons.

And so in celebrating the end of the UN decade in New York, 1992; it prompted the African disability movement to lobby and gain UN support for the African Decade of Disabled Persons.

When PAFOD (Pan African Federation of the Disabled) held its congress in Lusaka in October 1994, it endorsed the idea and developed proposals for a concept paper on its objectives. This was similarly echoed by AFUB (African Union of the Blind) at their congress meeting held in Nairobi Kenya in 1996.

In Mexico in 1998, the DPI African caucus (PAFOD and its affiliates) drummed up a call for an African Conference to concretize the announcement of the African Decade.

In January 1999 the major African continental disabled persons organizations participated at the African seminar on Development Co-operation on Disability and Human Rights in Cape Town. In a resolution taken during this seminar they called upon all governments in Africa to declare a decade for disabled person in Africa.

The decision to proclaim the Decade is the result of a recommendation by the Labour and Social Affairs Commission of OAU during its 22nd session at Windhoek (19-24 April 1999) and adopted by the OAU Assembly of Heads of State and Government, meeting at Algiers (12-14 July 1999). This was endorsed by the 72nd ordinary session of OAU Council of Ministers and 36th Assembly of the Heads of State and Government, respectively, held at Lome 10-12 July 2000). (See attached declaration)

ARI, in collaboration with the continental DPOs and with funding from UN Voluntary Trust Fund, ILO, WHO, prepared an all African meeting on the African Decade, held in Addis Ababa in February 2002. Representatives, DPOs and the UN Agencies attended. The meeting summarize present and planned activities that would fall under the overall aims and objectives of the African Decade. At the end of the conference, a continental plan of action for the Decade was developed.

At its first ordinary session, the Executive Council of the African Union, meeting at Durban (9-10 July 2002), endorsed the "Plan of Action for the African Decade of People with Disabilities" in its regulation no. 7, "African Decade of Disabled Persons"

Later during the Disability African Regional Consultative Conference held in Johannesburg (1-6 May 2003), the Government of the Republic of South Africa accepted to host the Secretariat of the African Decade for Persons with Disabilities.