The Kenya’s persons with disabilities act, act no. 14 of 2003: a case for compliance of the act with the constitution of Kenya, 2010 and international law.

Abstract

This study is divided into five chapters. Chapter one is a broad overview and layout of the research. It outlines the research project. This provides an overview of the essence of the research. It covers the background of the research, the statement of the problem, justification of the study, objectives of the study, hypothesis of the study, theoretical framework, literature review, methodology to be used and the limitations of the study. Chapter two provides an in-depth understanding of the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocols. In addition, this chapter discusses the provisions of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010, touching on the rights of persons with disability. Chapter three gives an overview of the Persons with Disabilities Act and also touches on other Kenyan major pieces of legislation with general provisions on disability rights in Kenya. This section will demonstrate the country‘s level of commitment to the disability cause and to portray how the disability human rights principle has been adopted locally. Chapter four is comparative in nature and discusses the legal treatment accorded to persons with disabilities in the Republic of Korea, which is developed in the law and observance of the rights of persons with disabilities. This will demonstrate that Kenya lags behind in recognizing and implementing fundamental rights and freedoms, structures and mechanisms put in place to protect the rights and persons with disabilities. In addition, it gives key insights of how the Kenyan statute can be improved to comply with the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 and international instruments. Chapter five is divided into two parts: the conclusion and the recommendations. The conclusion is a summary of the research findings. The main purpose of the conclusion is to demonstrate that the Persons with Disabilities Act has pronounced gaps and it can only safely be held so when it is measured against the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 and the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as yardsticks. It also discusses Kenya‘s level and extent of compliance on disability laws as captured under the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 and international instruments. The recommendations comprise of suggestions of legislative and institutional reforms, which are necessary in order to effectively deal or cater for the rights of the persons with disabilities in Kenya.