ICT: Information and communication technologies ILO: International Labour Organization ISO: International Organization for Standardization IYDP: International Year of Disabled Persons MDG: Millennium Development Goals NGO: non-governmental organization ODA: Official Development Assistance SCRPD: Secretariat for Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities SDG: Sustainable Development Goals UN: United Nations UDHR: Universal Declaration of Human Rights UN DESA: Department of Economic and Social Affairs UNESCO: United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNICEF: United Nations Children’s Fund UNISDR: United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction WHO: World Health Organization WPA: World Programme of Action Concerning Disabled Persons Introduction Context Disability is both a human rights issue and a development issue, a duality which has been recognized in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Addressing the importance of disability inclusion for development, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development includes several development targets for persons with disabilities and for accessible environments for them. In 2011, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the
Due to changes in the methodology to identify persons with disabilities across time, there is a lack of data comparable over time, which hampers any assessment of progress. Therefore, this report focuses mainly on providing a snapshot in time of the situation of persons with disabilities. Outline Chapter 2 gives a historical perspective of the UN’s work on disability and development and presents the international normative framework on disability. Chapter 3 gives an overview of the situation of persons with disabilities in development and discusses the definition, prevalence and data availability on the situation of persons with disabilities. It also explores accessibility to physical and information environments, by presenting UN mandates, reviewing best practices and available data on accessibility. Chapter 4 reviews the participation of persons with disabilities in education and employment, their health and their access to health care and to social protection. The chapter also reviews the status and participation of persons with disabilities who tend to suffer from double discrimination: women and girls with disabilities, children with disabilities, youth with disabilities, older persons with disabilities, indigenous persons with disabilities, refugees with disabilities as well as persons with mental and intellectual disabilities. Chapter 4 ends by discussing two examples of emerging issues in disability and development: (i) disaster risk reduction and humanitarian emergencies; and (ii) human settlements and urban development. Chapter 5 debates the way forward by identifying measures which can contribute to making the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development disability-inclusive. Most sections in the report end with a conclusion summarizing the section and recommendations on the way forward. These recommendations are based on each section findings and on expert advice. Historical overview of the UN’s work on disability and development
Mixing bottom-up with top-down approaches The creation of accessible services can be achieved from either a top-down or a bottom-up approach. Table 7 highlights the fundamentals of both approaches. By combining the principles of both top-down and bottom-up approaches, the principles of universal design can be brought to fruition (see section Accessibility). Feedback from local communities on accessibility needs and capacities can inform national and international legislation on accessibility standards, which in turn, can promote the application of accessibility at the local levels, basing accessibility policies on the user experience. Public servants can be sensitized to solicit this feedback from communities and processes can be established to integrate it in decision-making. Such practices, which incorporate user experience, can help to identify the barriers to accessibility in the local community, enhancing user experience and driving the concept of universal design. Table 7. Bottom-up with top-down approaches to accessibility Approach Fundamentals Example Top-down Implement accessibility through the lens of the CRPD, other internationally agreed frameworks and national legislation. Such legislations are regulated by standard-setting specifications. In Cambodia, the Law on the Protection and the Promotion of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2009) refers to accessibility in the integration, protection and establishment of provisions and services which are accessible to persons with disabilities. Bottom-up Driven by local initiatives which identify requirements and minimum accessibility standards appropriate to During the first Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons governments, civil society
often removed from their families at birth or immediately following a medical diagnosis, at times against the expressed wishes of the parents. In an assessment of alternative care in 21 countries, it was found that in 13 countries, disability was listed as the ‘root cause’ of a child being placed in alternative care. In 2007, one third of children in alternative care in Eastern Europe were children with disabilities. The number of children in institutions in Serbia declined by 63% between 2000 and 2011, whilst the number of children with disabilities declined by only 37%. Girls with disabilities in many parts of the world are more likely to be institutionalised. Children with disabilities in institutions tend to face a chronic deficit of physical and emotional attention and affection. Research indicates that children with disabilities in institutions are 1.8 times more likely to be neglected and 2.8 times more likely to be emotionally neglected. Children with disabilities are more vulnerable to neglect, exploitation and violence International research has shown that children with disabilities are almost four times as likely as their peers to suffer from physical violence and three times as likely from sexual violence. Children with mental or intellectual disabilities were found to be almost five times more likely to be victims of sexual abuse than peers without disabilities. Children in institutional settings are also more prone to physical, sexual and emotional abuse and this is exacerbated for children with disabilities. The added stress or shame of looking after a child with a disability may cause family tension, neglect and abuse. Data from 15 countries showed that severe physical punishment was more likely to be meted out by family members on children with disability in seven of those countries. In severe cases this neglect and abuse may even lead to infanticide or so called ‘mercy killings’ – a crime attracting lower penalties in many countries.
Rigorous evaluations of the impact of policies and programs on persons with disabilities are lacking. These require not only high-quality data on disability and the environment, but also baseline data and well-constructed comparison or control groups. Such studies are scarce and more efforts should be placed into monitoring and evaluating national policies impacting on persons with disabilities. In particular, with the implementation of new policies and programs, care should be taken to establish baseline data and set up proper comparison or control groups so that outcomes can be evaluated properly. These evaluations should be conducted in a participatory manner including persons with disabilities who are ultimately the beneficiaries of the programmes. Finally, in the current era of digitisation, persons with disabilities should benefit from the data revolution and the opportunities that such a revolution may provide in making them more visible. New technologies should be explored to identify ways to monitor the situation of persons with disabilities at a lower cost. These data should be freely available and accessible. Financing for disability-inclusive development The Third International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD3) was held in July 2015 and gathered high-level political representatives, including Heads of State and Government, and Ministers of Finance, Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation, as well as all relevant institutional stakeholders, non-governmental organizations and business sector entities. The Conference resulted in an inter-governmentally negotiated and agreed outcome, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, which constitutes an important contribution to a disability inclusive 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In particular, in the Agenda, Members States commit to: Providing social protection to persons with disabilities