South Africans with disabilities constitute a sizeable proportion of the population, and their status in society is extremely varied in a developing nation with socio-economic inequality and a history of apartheid.
[4][5] The national constitution's chapter two, "bill of rights" explicitly prohibits unfair discrimination against people on the basis of disability or health status.
[8] Disabled People South Africa (DPSA) organised a 150-person march to the Union Buildings in protest of government's decision to dissolve the department.
[9] The Department of Social Development's 2015 White Paper on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities updated and supplemented the 1997 INDS by integrating the provisions of the CRPD and its Optional Protocol.
In a study published by the University of Johannesburg's Centre for Social Development in Africa (CSDA) in 2014, it was shown that 68% of working-age South Africans with disabilities had never attempted to seek employment.
[20][21][22][23][24] The 2014 CSDA study showed that the proportion of people with disabilities in South Africa who had achieved a university degree had risen from 0,3% in 2002, to between 1% and 2% in 2014.
Deaf swimmer and Olympic silver medallist Terence Parkin has won the most medals at the Deaflympics history with a tally of 33.