Abner Manlapaz

Abner Manlapaz is a disability rights activist from the Philippines. He co-founded Life Haven Center for Independent Living and several other organizations of persons with disabilities. He is one of the core members of the Philippine Coalition on UNCRPD who is responsible in submitting several treaties to CRPD, ESCR including CSO report on SDGs.

He is actively promoting accessibility and development of support services particularly the establishment of personal assistance system and access to assistive products. He has supported disability inclusion in numerous development projects working with JICA, Australian Aid, the World Bank, ADB, ASB Indonesia-Philippines, Philippines Institute for Development Studies and many other organizations. He has been involved in the study on inclusiveness World Bank funded projects such as the flagship 4Ps cash transfer program and is presently working with Oxfam Policy Management and NOSSAL Institute for the research project on the study of the cost of raising children with disabilities and the Disability Data Management System in Batangas.

He also provides training on the rights of persons with disabilities as well as disability inclusion in projects, programs or activities. He participated in different policy discussion such as the social protection floor, the revised Philippine Social Protection Framework, The Philippine Development Plan, Philippine National Standards on Public Utility Vehicle, and many others including the proposed law on disability support allowance.

Abner is a member of various committees such as the National Council on Disability Affairs’ Subcommittee on Accessibility and Built Environment, Subcommittee on Auxiliary Social Services, Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Sub-Committee on Social Protection and the Department of Trade and Industry’s Bureau of Product Standards – Technical Committee on Road Vehicle (TC-44).