Inclusion of children with disabilities
UNICEF pays special attention to the most vulnerable children ensuring they are included in society
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Disability is the single most serious barrier to education across the globe
Like all children, children with disabilities have ambitions and dreams for their futures. Like all children, they need quality education to develop their skills and realize their full potential.
Yet, children with disabilities are often overlooked in policymaking, limiting their access to education and their ability to participate in social, economic and political life. Worldwide, these children are among the most likely to be out of school. They face persistent barriers to education stemming from discrimination, stigma and the routine failure of decision makers to incorporate disability in school services.
Nearly 50 per cent of children with disabilities are not in school, compared to only 13 per cent of their peers without disabilities. Robbed of their right to learn, children with disabilities are often denied the chance to take part in their communities, the workforce and the decisions that most affect them.
Inclusion and disability are important themes in UNICEF's work, and are deeply woven into numerous programs around the world. Children with disabilities should enjoy the same rights and freedoms as all other children, however, despite significant advances in social reforms, they remain the most vulnerable group.
Discrimination against children with disabilities often results in limited access to basic social services, vulnerability to violence, poverty and inability to participate in society.
According to statistics at the beginning of 2018, 176,000 or 9.4% of all children in Belarus have disabilities and / or special needs. In 2017-2018, about 4,000 children were registered with primary disabilities; for 36.1% of them, the cause is a neuropsychiatric disease.
Despite the fact that education coverage of children with disabilities and special needs is growing, 12% of school-age children with disabilities and special needs do not attend any educational institution. 8.7% of them do not have the necessary educational institution in their area.
In addition, the higher the degree of loss of health, the more likely the child will not have access to any educational programs.
A 2018 UNICEF study found that the majority of children and adolescents with disabilities have access to medical, transportation and cultural services. However, for every third respondent (32%), sports and physical education are partially or completely inaccessible.
The main barriers to the involvement of children with disabilities in sports are the inadequacy of services to different physical abilities of people, lack of information about services for people with disabilities, as well as high prices and reluctance of staff to help children and adolescents with disabilities overcome obstacles.
In the project “Just Children. Their stories "- meet five-year-old Vanya from Vileika. The town is small, but Vanya captivates everyone he meets with his cheerful smile and vibrant personality.
In the project “Just Children. Their stories "- meet Lesha from Gomel. He loves playing video games, visiting the library, exercising at the gym and modeling with his sister.
In the project “Just Children. Their stories "- meet Angelina from Soligorsk. She enjoys school and hopes to become a vet one day.
Creating a more inclusive society for children with disabilities
The topic of inclusion of children with disabilities is a key component of the UNICEF country program in Belarus for 2016–2020.
UNICEF works closely with the government of the Republic of Belarus to significantly increase the availability and inclusiveness of quality health and educational services for the most vulnerable children with disabilities in the country, especially in rural areas.
Partnerships aim to empower children with disabilities and their families so that they can participate fully and equally in society.
Specific measures include:
- Working to improve the early detection of developmental delays and special educational needs;
- Early learning and inclusive education;
- Transfer of children from residential institutions to families and family support services;
- Preventing discrimination and stigma, and collecting data.
- In cooperation with partners, we have achieved the following results:
- A network of 28 early intervention centers equipped with rehabilitation equipment, didactic materials and toys has been formed and operates in Belarus. It is expected to provide 90% coverage of children under 3 years of age with early intervention services by 2020.
- The developed compulsory course “Fundamentals of Early Intervention” was included in the national in-service training curriculum for pediatric neurologists and pediatricians.
- Resource centers for early intervention have been established in each oblast and capital of Belarus, where methodological support is provided to specialists.
In cooperation with UNICEF, the following results have been achieved:
- A network of 28 early interventions equipped with rehabilitation equipment, didactic materials and toys has been formed and is functioning in Belarus. It is expected to provide 90% coverage of children under 3 years of age with early intervention services by 2020.
- The developed compulsory course “Fundamentals of Early Intervention” was included in the national in-service training curriculum for pediatric neurologists and pediatricians.
- In each region and capital of Belarus, resource centers for early intervention have been established, where methodological support is provided to specialists.
Just a kid
“Just a kid” is the name of the awareness campaign in support of children with disabilities and their families within the framework of the project “Prevention of Childhood Disability and Social Integration of Children with Disabilities and Psychophysical Development in the Republic of Belarus”. The campaign is being implemented by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) jointly with the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Belarus and with financial support from the Government of the Russian Federation.
