Every Child Counts
Understanding the needs and perspectives of children with disabilities in the St
Highlights
Children with disabilities (CWDs) are one of the most marginalised and excluded groups of children. Defined and judged by what they lack, rather than what they have, they experience widespread violations of their rights that result not from the intrinsic nature of disability but from the social exclusion that arises from it (UNICEF, 2013).
Palestinian CWDs typically face a particularly dire situation, given the levels of cultural stigma directed at disability and the protracted conflict that surrounds them, which has devastated infrastructure, fractured the economy and overwhelmed service providers.
This situation analysis and needs assessment, commissioned by UNICEF State of Palestine, adopts a lifecycle approach that captures difference at the individual, family and community levels.
Paying attention to differences in age, gender, disability type and family characteristics, our study explores how Palestinian CWDs are marginalised and excluded, the obstacles they face in fulfilling their rights and what mechanisms might be put into place by the government, donors and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), communities and families to better support their development and their rights.