Supplementary information to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

This report is our written contribution to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ review of Sweden in 2024. The report does not reflect all challenges within the scope of the CRPD. Consequently, submissions from other actors, especially organisations of persons with disabilities, constitute important sources.

2024 marks 15 years since the CRPD entered into force in Sweden. In some areas, progress has been made. However, the paradigm shift which stands at the heart of the Convention has yet to be fully implemented and several of the general commitments and specific rights have not been realised. This applies, for example, to preconditions for self-determination, participation, health, education, work, leisure, democracy and freedom. In some respects, there have been set-backs.

In Sweden, the living conditions of persons with disabilities are still generally worse than those of the rest of the population. Education levels are lower, unemployment is higher, economic vulnerability is greater and physical and mental health are poorer. Access to individualised support is limited and the preconditions for real self-determination and full participation in society are lacking. The individual’s full legal capacity is not sufficiently protected and persons with disabilities remain subject to various forms of coercion and limitations in health care and social support. They are also more exposed to various forms of violence at home, at school, at the workplace and on the Internet. Since the CRPD Committee’s last review in 2014, inequality has increased in several areas and discrimination is reported to a greater extent.