A bright yellow poster shows a cartoon image of Ida Petri. She is wearing a red top and is using a wheelchair. The poster shows the CBM Inclusion Advisory Group logo and reads:
Women with disabilities are not just stakeholders – they are advisors shaping systems change.
From advocacy to advisory leadership
Women with disabilities are leading change, not only by raising their voices, but by shaping decisions, policies and systems that affect their lives.
CBM Global Inclusion Advisory Group (CBM IAG) has supported women with disabilities to move into paid, respected advisory roles, influencing governments, UN agencies and development partners through the its Advisory Capacity Development and Exchange (ACE) program.
ACE is grounded in feminist and disability rights principles. It recognises lived experience as expertise and invests in people, relationships and long‑term influence rather than short courses or one‑off training.
“It provided me with skills in writing, communicating and influencing, strategic thinking, problem solving, analysing and analytical skills.” – ACE Fellow
Why women’s leadership in the disability movement matters
Women with disabilities hold deep expertise grounded in lived experience which is critical for shaping disability inclusive development decisions.
ACE strengthens this expertise with advisory skills so women with disabilities can influence policies, programmes and systems as recognised advisors working with governments, multilateral organisations and development partners.
At the same time, ACE ensures that this expertise remains within the disability movement, growing collective leadership, and shifting power to those most affected.
“Without this fellowship it would take me another three to five years before I was ready for this kind of advisory work.” — Ida Putri, ACE Fellow (Indonesia)
Through mentoring, peer exchange and real‑world advisory opportunities, women leaders with disabilities have developed the skills, confidence and networks needed to translate disability rights commitments into concrete policy and programmatic change.