NORTH AMERICA - CARIBBEAN REGION OF THE WORLD BLIND UNION

REPORT FOR THE QUADRENNIUM 2013 – 2016

It has been an honor for me to serve during this quadrennial period as President of the North America - Caribbean Region, and an Officer of the World Blind Union. It has been a privilege to work with the International President, Mr. Arnt Holte and the other Table Officers, as well as with the WBU’s CEO, Dr. Penny Hartin. Their unfailing dedication to the organization’s goals, and their commitment to improving the lives of people who are blind or partially sighted wherever in the world they live, are inspiring. I would also like to thank the Regional delegates and all the member organizations for their support over the last four years.

I would be remiss if I did not also acknowledge with thanks the assistance of my predecessor as Regional President, Carl Augusto, whose good counsel and broad experience were freely shared. I am grateful for his generous mentorship. Carl has retired from his position as President and CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB), and we wish him a long and healthy retirement. We shall all miss both his wit and his wisdom.

The Region continues its practice of holding semi-annual meetings hosted by member organizations. In this quadrennium we have met in Canada, the United States, and also in Antigua and Barbuda: a meeting which marked the return of a Regional gathering to the Caribbean sub-region after an absence of several years. In May of 2013, the Region suspended its decision not to hold meetings in countries to which dog guides were refused easy access, with the hope that by having a presence in these countries from time to time, opportunities would be made available to advocate for the open acceptance of dog guides in all countries of the Region. The meeting in Antigua celebrated that country’s recent decision to permit the entry of dog guides: a decision we applaud and we congratulate the Antigua and Barbuda Society of and for the Blind on the success of their advocacy.

Strategic Priority 1: Human Rights and Representation

Regional representatives from Canada, the United States and the Caribbean countries have been active at the international level throughout this quadrennium in the promotion of the human rights of persons who are blind or partially sighted, through attendance at many United Nations and other global organizations’ conferences and meetings, and through membership on the WBU’s Human Rights Committee. Additionally, the Region actively supported the working group which produced the Resources Guide – now on the WBU website – which provides advice and recommendations to organizations wishing to engage with international organizations of various kinds to promote the rights, needs and perspectives of blind and partially sighted persons.

Work continues in the Region to support and promote the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. In 2009, Haiti and Jamaica became the first countries in the Region to ratify the Convention, with Canada ratifying the following year. Other countries in the Caribbean soon followed suit, but more work still remained to be done in this quadrennium. Thanks to the efforts of the Caribbean Council of the Blind – Eye Care Caribbean and various national organizations, we are very pleased to report the ratification of the Convention by Barbados on February 27th 2013, Grenada on August 27th 2014,Guyana on September 10th 2014, Trinidad and Tobago on June 25th 2015, Bahamas on September 28th 2015 and Antigua and Barbuda on January 7th 2016. Work continues to encourage ratification in the few remaining countries of the Caribbean. The United States has signed the Convention, but has not yet ratified it. Our American colleagues, therefore, continue to advocate for ratification, and we trust their efforts will soon meet with success.

Strategic Priority 2: Capacity Building

Organizations in the Region continue to support Project Aspiro which was launched in Bangkok at our last General Assembly in order that its contents should remain current and are promoted as widely as possible.

Perkins School in the US and the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) continued throughout this quadrennium in cooperation with other organizations such as the Norwegian Association of the Blind and Partially Sighted (NABP) and Sightsavers, to provide financial and human resource support to the Institutional Development Program (IDP). Representatives from Perkins and CNIB attended and made presentations at the 6th Africa Forum held in Uganda in October of 2015.

Strategic Priority 3: Accessibility

In relation to the strategic objective concerning access to the environment, Regional organizations, in cooperation with organizations from many other Regions, continued to support and provide human resources towards the efforts to establish an international technical regulation covering the warning sound to be made by hybrid and silent vehicles. These negotiations, conducted at an international level at various locations with governments, vehicle manufacturers and other stakeholders, have proved arduous, but we remain committed to supporting the continuing effort to arrive at a solution to this very serious issue.

The Region is also pleased to have provided human resources to the international negotiations which culminated in the adoption of what has now become universally known as the Treaty of Marrakesh. This epic agreement is now in its ratification process, and individuals from our Region are centrally involved in the WBU’s global efforts to promote both the treaty and its ratification. Canada, having announced in April of 2015 its intention to accede to the treaty and ratify it, has now placed legislation before its Parliament to amend Canada’s Copyright Act as the legislative framework for implementing the treaty. We congratulate CNIB and the Canadian Council of the Blind for their strong advocacy. The Region also congratulates everyone who participated in the process which led to this historic international accord.

Strategic Priority 4: Information Sharing and Collaboration

Throughout this quadrennium, the Region’s organizations have continued to collaborate with their counterparts throughout the world. In this regard, I draw attention to the items mentioned above, such as participation in the global efforts towards ratification of Marrakesh and the work towards sound warnings on otherwise silent vehicles, to name but two examples. The Region acknowledges the paramount need for information sharing, and actively supports the principles of outreach and the broadening of collaborative networks at the local, national and international levels. Our strength lies both in our unity of purpose, and in our collective action.

Respectfully submitted,

Charles Mossop

President

WBU North America-Caribbean Region