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UN Global Advocate Eddie Ndopu: Changing how the world thinks about disability
When Eddie Ndopu was a toddler in Namibia, he was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy and given just five years to live. Now 33, Ndopu is on a mission to reframe how the world thinks about disability, advocating for human rights and equal access to education all over the world.
“The statistics are still abysmal. We're sitting between 90 and 98% of children with disabilities in the Global South who've never seen the inside of a classroom,” Ndopu says “It remains a travesty of justice.”
In 2019, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres tapped Ndopu to be one of 17 Advocates for the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, helping translate the needs of the world’s most vulnerable people to a global audience.
GZERO World’s Tony Maciulis caught up with Ndopu on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly to learn more about the fight for education access, the power of representation, and why it’s important not just to make sure people with disabilities are the beneficiaries of international development, but actually in the decision-making room.
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Eddie Ndopu: "People with disabilities need to be in leadership"
As many as 98% of disabled children in the developing world “never see the inside of a classroom” or go to school at all, says Eddie Ndopu. He could have been one of that vast majority. Born in Namibia, he was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy and expected to live for only five years. Now 33, Ndopu is a leading advocate for human rights and accessibility for all.
GZERO’s Tony Maciulis caught up with Ndopu at the UN General Assembly this week. The two discussed his role as one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Advocates, a prominent position he shares alongside leaders including Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister Mia Mottley of Barbados, and Microsoft’s Vice Chair and President Brad Smith. He hopes to bring a “fresh” perspective to the discussion of global development and help leaders understand the needs of the most vulnerable people, including those with disabilities.
Ndopu credits his success to his fiercely strong single mother, who never gave up on him despite all odds, and he continues to pay it forward and find new ways to raise awareness of the need for greater inclusion. He describes his recent memoir "Sipping Dom Perignon through a Straw" as “equal parts cheeky and incisive.” Just like him.
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