Ahead of International Day of Persons with Disabilities, 3 December, CII-India Business and Disability Network today hosted “India Inc.-The Valuable 500” at The Leela Palace, New Delhi in association with Brookfield Properties and EnAble India to bring India’s top industry leaders to drive Disability Inclusion as a Board Room Agenda.

The Valuable 500 is a global campaign that was launched at the World Economic Forum this year. The Valuable 500, founded by Caroline Casey, aims to bring together 500 CEOs across the globe to commit to get disability inclusion included in the boardroom agenda.

CII-IBDN is the country resource partner for The Valuable 500 and has been mobilising industry commitment to the Valuable 500 statement. It has been working with companies, handholding them in their inclusion journey, promoting cross-learnings, advocacy, and facilitating partnerships between stakeholders.

The Valuable 500 witnessed participation of industry champions such as Boeing India, ANZ, Accenture, RBS, Future Retail Limited, and Mahindra Group sharing their experiences of finding value in inclusion, presented solutions to engage Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) in the workplace and deliberated on incorporating Disability-Inclusion in the business strategies.

25 conscious and responsible business leaders from India pledged to take affirmative actions for Disability Inclusion.

More than 100 industry representatives were in attendance. The event concluded with an exhilarating dance performance by PwDs from an award winning NGO, We Are One, who mesmerized the audience by presenting impressive dance steps with an ease on the wheelchair.

To date, more than 200 companies globally have signed up the Valuable 500 to support this cause and many are already in the process of joining it. Even in the Indian context, the number of such companies is in a constant rise, making disability inclusion a part of their vision.

29 November 2019

New Delhi