Disability Rights News Round Up

Recent weeks have seen a fair amount of activity related to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) – a number of the key milestones and events are outlined here.

The United Nations convened the 4th session of the Conference of States Parties (COSP) to the CRPD. Unlike other treaties, the COSP meets every year. There were over 600 participants in this year’s “Enabling Development, Realizing the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities through Participation, Employment and International Cooperation” themed COSP session. Attendees represented governments, UN agency family members, the international disability community, and members of civil society.

During the three-day session, the COSP focused on a number of formal and informational interventions. Focused on inclusive development, the first roundtable session allowed for a discussion of how to realize the CRPD through international cooperation. During the discussion, Article 32 of the CRPD and the role of international cooperation were reaffirmed, and new modalities for providing aid to meet the needs of mainstream disability in development were addressed.

The second roundtable discussion focused on ensuring effective and full participation of individuals with disabilities in public and private life, as addressed in Article 29 of the CRPD. This session focused on identifying the progress made to date and barriers to political and public participation that still exist. Strategic recommendations were made to ensure the realization of disability-inclusive and accessible political progress. One of the primary concerns addressed was a lack of physical accessibility, which continues to be a major barrier to the full and effective inclusion of individuals with disabilities in public and political life. In order for the CRPD to be fully implemented, participants noted, individuals with all types of disabilities, including those with psycho-social or cognitive disabilities, must not be deprived of access to the political process.

In addition to the formal roundtable discussions, an informal session was held to discuss individuals’ with disabilities right to employment. Participants noted that individuals with disabilities are twice as likely to be unemployed than their peers without disabilities. The importance of comprehensive reforms, including development strategies to ensure accessible labor markets, the need for a firm policy framework against discrimination, and the importance of enforcing accessibility and education were all discussed.

The United Nations system also provided a presentation on their implementation of the CRPD, and outlined how UN programs had been used to ensure its implementation in countries and regions worldwide. The role of the UN organizations in fostering collaboration among governments, UN entities, and civil society to further the promotion of the CRPD was highlighted.

The 6th session of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, held between September 19 ad 23, followed the COSP. The opening session of the Committee meeting was led by Chairman Ronald McCallum, who provided and update on the number of countries who had submitted initial reports during 2011. Since the Committee meeting held in April, 16 reports had been received by the Secretariat, including Mexico, Korea, Belgium, and Ecuador.

The Chairman went on to address the Committee’s need to increase the number of reports. Mr. McCallum suggested an examination of collaboration across treaty bodies, particularly the Human Rights Council. Further, he stressed that the Committee had emerged as a group whose central purpose was to conduct constructive dialogues with States parties, and to work alongside national human rights agencies and civil society. To date, Spain’s report is the second of the 16 submitted to be considered, and a list of issues related to the reports of Peru and China have been adopted.

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Disability Groups Sue the City of New York for Inadequate Emergency Planning

Two leading U.S. civil rights groups – Disability Rights Advocates and the Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled – recently filed a suit claiming that the city of New York and Mayor Michael Bloomberg placed people with disabilities in life-threatening situations by failing to take their “unique needs” into consideration when planning for emergencies and disasters. The organizations taking the action claim that major disasters in New York City, including the terrorist attacks on September 11^th and the destruction of the recent hurricane have highlighted the lack of resources the city has in place to meet the needs of its 900,000 citizens with disabilities during emergency situations.

During the response to Hurricane Irene reports indicate that 75 percent of the designated emergency shelters in New York were not fully accessible to wheelchair users,  the televised emergency announcements did not include American Sign Language for individuals with low hearing or deafness, and the evacuation maps from the city were not useable by persons with low vision or blindness. In addition, the modes of transport allowed for evacuation of some areas relied heavily on school busses, which lacked lifts for wheelchair users. At the heart of the suit is the claim that the city is violating federal and state anti-discrimination laws by failing to make emergency plans, shelters, announcements, and transportation fully accessible to individuals with physical disabilities. Both Disability Rights Advocates and the Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled are seeking a court order to force the city to revamp its emergency preparation plan to account for the needs of persons with disabilities, including ensuring accessible transportation, shelter, communication, notification, and assistance during disaster recovery.

This is not the first case focused on inadequate emergency preparedness for persons with disabilities to be taken in the U.S. In the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita civil rights groups made claims focusing on the inadequacy of the emergency responses which led to loss of life, and resulted in persons with disabilities being displaced from their homes and placed in inappropriate and inaccessible shelters. The loss of life and danger faced by persons with disabilities during and following Hurricane Katrina was highlighted by Marcie Roth, Director of the Office of Disability Integration and Coordination (FEMA) in a written statement to the House Committee on Homeland Security, Subcommittee on Emergency Communications, Preparedness, and Response. Director Roth recounted her attempts to assist individuals with disabilities who contacted her office, and the difficulties these individuals faced.

To date the majority of inclusive emergency preparedness planning has taken place at the international level in rural areas. Despite the lessons learned regarding the need for inclusive emergency responses following Hurricane Katrina, many of the same issues were seen following Hurricane Irene. Nations which have ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities are now required to ensure that individuals with disabilities are protected in situations of risk. In addition in some nations, including the United States,  the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in emergency response planning is required by federal agencies.

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New Online Education and Training Guide to Support Employment of Individuals with Disabilities

The International Labour Organization (ILO) recently produced an online education and training guide. The guide is aims at supporting improved capacity of governments in collaboration with social partners and civil society to design, while implementing and evaluating legislation that effectively supports equal employment opportunities for persons with disabilities. The ILO is the responsible for drawing up and overseeing international labor standards and is the only “tripartite” United Nations agency that brings together representatives of governments, employers, and workers to jointly shape policies and programs promoting equality in the workplace.

The ILO has worked for a number of years to promote equal training and employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities through international standards, knowledge development, advocacy, and technical advisory services. The ILO’s work in this field has been given greater priority with the entry into force of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The CRPD is driving a worldwide law reform program and State Parties to the Convention are required to review its policy in the disability field. There is clearly a need to promote the rights of individuals with disabilities with respect to education and acquiring the skills to enter employment. The ILO’s online resource is timely and provides guidance to achieve an inclusive and accessible labor market.

 

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United Nations Hosted Event Series to Discuss Implementation of the CRPD

Over the coming weeks, the United Nations will host a series of meetings focusing on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The fourth session of the Conference of State Parties (COSP) will be held at the United Nations Head Quarters in New York from September 7 – 9. The COSP is an annual meeting at which the countries participate to discuss the implementation of the CRPD.

Since the CRPD entered into international law, there have been three COSP meetings. In 2008 at the first meeting the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was elected. In 2009 and 2010, COSP meetings focused on Accessibility and Reasonable Accommodation, and Inclusion. The theme for the fourth session is “Enabling Development, Realizing the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities”. At the upcoming session a number of roundtable discussions will be held focusing on the role of International Cooperation in realizing the Convention, Political and Civil Participation, and Work and Employment.

In advance of the COSP meeting, a report from the UN Secretary General to the 66^th session of the General Assembly has been published. The report notes that currently 102 nations have ratified the Convention, and among these are 26 countries from the African region, 23 countries from the Asian region, 15 from the Eastern European Group, 22 from the Latin American and Caribbean group, and 15 from the Western European Group. The report also provides an overview of the progress made on implementing the Convention on a number of fronts, at the country level, regional level, and within the United Nations. Examples of policy initiatives taken at the country level include: the decision made by Argentina to ensure that all presidential broadcasts on the national television network be interpreted in sign language simultaneously; China issuing a National Human Rights Action Plan for 2009-2010 in which a short-term goal of human rights protection includes protection for individuals with disabilities; and the creation of the National Register on Disability Statistics (RED) in Costa Rica to improve statistics on individuals with disabilities. The COSP provide an opportunity for further discussion on these initiatives and the establishment of similar initiatives in other nations. IDRM staff will be present during the fourth session and will provide updates following its conclusion.

Not long after the COSP meeting in New York, the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities will have its second session this year – its sixth ever. The Committee has 18 members, who are elected for a period of four years before another election is held at the COSP. To date the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has received 25 reports submitted by State Parties. The first report to be considered and receive concluding observations is the Tunisian report, which was considered by the Committee during its 5th session in April 2011.

On the agenda for the 6^th session is the adoption of the concluding observation in Spain’s report, but in the interim, the Committee adopted a list of issues on Spain. These issues include: Article 5 (Equality and non-discrimination), specifically whether the need to present a disability certificate to bring a discrimination claim before the courts will be abolished; and Article 11 (Right to life) the Committee has asked Spain to explain whether guardians or caregivers of persons with disabilities can take decisions regarding the termination or withdrawal of medical treatment, nutrition, or any other life support. With regard to Article 12 (Equal recognition before the law) the Committee has asked Spain to provide data on the number of individuals with disabilities who have been placed under guardianship to enable them to exercise legal capacity and on the number of rulings modifying the capacity to act if any; as well as to explain how Spain has ensured that guardianship is exercised to the benefit of the ward, in view of the absence of explicit safeguards in current legislation against undue influence or conflict of interest.

 

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The Americans with Disabilities Act Reaches its 21st Year

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) recently celebrated its 21^st birthday. In 1990, the ADA was a pioneering law that prohibited discrimination on the basis of disability, and enshrined in law the concept of equality for individuals with disabilities. The ADA represented a landmark in the disability rights movement and was the culmination of a civil society movement across the United States that fought hard to remove barriers that prevented persons with disabilities participating within their communities and society. It has since been hugely influential in shaping anti-discrimination law worldwide.

The scope of the ADA is wide-ranging and extends to state and local governments, employers, and to the public and private spheres. In addition, the ADA goes beyond the traditional concepts of anti-discrimination law in enshrining the concept of reasonable accommodation in legislation. Reasonable accommodation requires the removal of barriers that restrict opportunities for individuals with disabilities. The body of literature related to questioning the effectiveness of the ADA in achieving its goals continues to grow.

The U.S. Supreme Court has interpreted the ADA in a narrower fashion, and in Federal Courts applicants citing the ADA often do not win their cases. Reports indicate that prisoners are the only class of litigants who are less successful than litigants citing the ADA. In addition, the ADA has not been as successful as some experts may have hoped at facilitating participation of individuals with disabilities in the workforce. In a Presidential Proclamation on the Anniversary of the ADA, Barak Obama stated:

Through the ADA, America was the first country in the world to comprehensively declare equality for citizens with disabilities. To continue promoting these principles, we have joined in signing the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. At its core, this Convention promotes equality. It seeks to ensure that persons with disabilities enjoy the same rights and opportunities as all people, and are able to lead their lives as do other individuals. Eventual ratification of this Convention would represent another important step in our forty-plus years of protecting disability rights. It would offer us a platform to encourage other countries to join and implement the Convention. Broad implementation would mean greater protections and benefits abroad for millions of Americans with disabilities, including our veterans, who travel, conduct business, study, reside, or retire overseas. In encouraging other countries to join and implement the Convention, we also could help level the playing field to the benefit of American companies, who already meet high standards under United States domestic law. Improved disabilities standards abroad would also afford American businesses increased opportunities to export innovative products and technologies, stimulating job creation at home.

Through continued progress, individuals with disabilities may soon truly be afforded the same rights and treated equally to those without disabilities.

 

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Disability and Development

Disability has gained currency as a policy issue in discourse related to development during the past decade. Recent legal and policy developments, including the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) have led to an increased recognition that disability is a development issue. Aside from containing an article that specifically addresses development cooperation, the CRPD has been described as having an explicit social dimension, as the majority of its articles focus on the removal of barriers and implementation of positive measures. A fair amount of progress has been made during the past decade, with governments and their donor agencies working to develop policies that are inclusive of individuals with disabilities. The US government through USAID Australia through AusAid, and Finland through their Ministry of Foreign Affairs have all taken action to improve accessibility and inclusion.

The World Bank, with support from the Italian Ministry for Foreign Affairs, published a report outlining where disability fits within current development policy. The report entitled, “Disability and International Cooperation and Development: A review of Policies and Practices”, examines recent policies of major multilateral and bilateral agencies, which address disability in development aid. While the review does not assess the merits or impacts of those policies, it provides an overview of current activity related to disability and development. In addition, it offers some indication of emerging trends with regard to disability in development, including:

• Disability has become a part of international cooperation and development aid. It was found that all reviewed agencies have included disability in either their policies and/or programmes. In most cases, it was found that this inclusion of disability was explicit and underpinned by relevant policy frameworks. In instances where specific disability policy framework is absent, disability is an integral part of the agencies implemented programmes.
• International cooperation policies often link disability to Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The MDGs were referenced in the majority of policies reviewed. Particularly MDG 1 (Eradicate hunger and extreme poverty) and MDG 2 (Universal Primary Education), there was a general recognition that these goals will not be achieved unless issues specific to poverty and access to education among persons with disabilities are adequately addressed.
• The policies and practices reviewed often combine several approaches to frame the inclusion of disability in development cooperation. Reviewing policies demonstrated that a human rights-based approach is increasingly being used in conjunction with other approaches such as poverty reduction for the inclusion of disability into international cooperation policies and programmes.
• With respect to implementation and practice, the prevailing trend is to incorporate disability-specific/ targeted and mainstreaming/ inclusion/ integration programs. Most of the surveyed agencies combine a number of approaches and instruments to include disability in development cooperation and aid. These approaches range from (a) disability specific programs targeting disabled people and their specific needs (b) disability-specific components that are added onto mainstream programs and (c) disabled people and their specific needs being addressed within mainstream programmes.
• Policies and programs are dynamic and have changed over time. The review examined policies and programs aimed at including disability in development aid over the last 15 years. It is still in its infancy the changes, which have happened, have been quite rapid and reflect international developments, which have culminated in the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities.

 

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World Report on Disability: The Way Forward

The World Report on Disabilities covers a wide range of topics including education and employment. Chapter 9 of the report presents a way forward toward a fuller and more accepting view of disability. An overarching theme throughout the report is the reinforcement that disability is a part of the human condition. At some stage in life, nearly every individual will experience some type of impairment, either temporary or permanent. This furthers the importance of ensuring that the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is implemented as quickly as possible to ensure a more inclusive and accessible society.

Chapter 9 summarizes the full findings of the report regarding what is known about disability, and makes recommendations to assist stakeholders in brining about the changes needed so to that individuals with disabilities can participate freely in their community without barriers. The report provides information on new findings on the prevalence of disability, estimating that more than a billion people worldwide are living with some form of disability. Further, it found that the number of people with disabilities is increasing, due to factors such as the growing aging population, and the global increase in chronic health conditions. In addition, the report found that disability resulting from health conditions, personal factors, and environmental factors varies greatly. This is particularly true for women with disabilities, for whom gender discrimination as well as discrimination based on disability can be problematic. The report also identified a number of barriers which must be addressed to develop successful strategies for combating discrimination. These barriers include: inadequate policies and standards, negative attitudes, lack of provision of services and problems with service delivery, inadequate funding, and lack of accessibility.

Nine crosscutting recommendations are made in the report that apply to the full range of stakeholders involved in creating an inclusive society. Implementing these recommendations requires that action be taken in a number of sectors, including the health sector, transportation, and infrastructure and education. Further, different actors such as local governments, international organizations such as the United Nations, non-governmental organizations, and local groups of individuals with disabilities must be involved in the process. The report recognizes that recommendations be tailored to best fit the needs of each nation, and suggests that where resources are limited, international cooperation may be beneficial.

The recommendations are as follows:

1. Enable access to all mainstream policies, systems, and services

It is important to recognize that individuals with disabilities have the same needs as all other citizens. That is the need to be healthy, educated, and able to earn a living. The report recommends that these needs be met within mainstream society, as that is where individuals without disabilities receive these services. Mainstreaming requires a commitment at all levels, and must to be considered across all sectors and built into new and existing legislation, standards, policies, strategies, and plans.

2. Invest in specific programs and services for people with disabilities

The report suggests that in addition to mainstream services, some individuals with disabilities may require access to specific measures, such as rehabilitation, support services or training.

3. Adopt a national disability strategy and plan of action

The report recognizes that while disability should be a part of all development strategies and action plans, it is also recommended that a national disability strategy and plan of action be adopted. A national disability plan would set out the long-term vision for individuals with disabilities in a country.

4. Involve people with disabilities

Throughout the report, there is a continuing theme of the inclusion of individuals with disabilities. It recognizes that individuals with disabilities often have unique insights about their disability and their situation. In formulating and implementing policies, laws, and services, individuals with disabilities should be consulted and actively involved.

5. Improve human resource capacity

The report addresses the need for training to change attitudes and knowledge on disability. It recommends that relevant training on disability, which incorporates human rights principles, be integrated into current curricula and accreditation programs so as to foster a positive approach to disability. These programs could be delivered to individuals working in services accessed by individuals with disabilities as well as mainstream services; for example, education, health care, rehabilitation, social protection, labor, law enforcement, and the media.

6. Provide adequate funding and improve affordability

The report found that public services for individuals with disabilities are often inadequately funded, affecting the availability and quality of such services. It recommends that adequate and sustainable funding of publicly provided services is needed to ensure that they reach all targeted beneficiaries and that quality services are provided. It also explores the idea of contracting out service provision, fostering public-private partnerships – notably with not-for profit organizations – and devolving budgets to individuals with disabilities for consumer-directed care as contributors to better service provision.

7. Increase public awareness and understanding of disability

The report recognizes that there is a need to improve public understanding of disability, confront negative perceptions, and represent disability fairly. It cites a number of means by which this can be accomplished in education and employment. For example, education authorities should ensure that schools are inclusive and have an ethos of valuing diversity. Employers should be encouraged to accept their responsibilities towards staff with disabilities.

8. Improve disability data collection

The report found that there is no universal system for collecting data on disability. It recommends that data be standardized and internationally comparable for benchmarking and monitoring progress on disability policies, and for the implementation of the CRPD nationally and internationally.

9. Strengthen and support research on disability

The report recognizes that research is essential for increasing public understanding about disability issues, informing disability policy and programs, and efficiently allocating resources.

Along with these nine crossing cutting recommendations, Chapter 9 delves further into how these recommendations can be applied at different levels and across different sectors.

 

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World Report on Disability: Employment

The World Report on Disabilities covers a range of topics and includes a chapter on employment for individuals with disabilities. As noted in the report, all jobs can be performed by an individual with a disability, given that provisions are made to meet the needs of the individual. In spite of this, rates of unemployment among individuals with disabilities remain high around the globe.

Article 27 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) “recognizes the right of persons with disabilities to work, on an equal basis with others and this includes the opportunity to gain a living by work freely chosen or accepted in a labour market and work environment that is open, inclusive and accessible to persons with disabilities.” Chapter 8 of the World Report on Disability underscores the rights of individuals with disabilities to employment, and documents the barriers that these individuals often face. When developing interventions aimed at increasing employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities, policymakers are often confronted with a lack of data on the existing employment of individuals with disabilities. The report cites a 2003 survey carried out by the International Labour Organisation that found that 16 of the 111 participating countries and territories had no current data on employment in relation to disability.

On a practical level, individuals with disabilities may experience difficulty gaining access to employment opportunities for a number of reasons. Barriers include differences in productivity, imperfections in the labor market related to discrimination and prejudice, and lack of incentives created by the disability benefit systems. While addressing these barriers, the report describes the need for inclusion of individuals with disabilities. This need focuses on a number of key areas, including the productive engagement of individuals with disabilities which increases individual well-being and contributes to national output; the sense of well-being provided by being employed, social cohesion, and human dignity; and that all people should have the opportunity to chose the direction of their lives and fully develop their talents and capabilities.

Further, the report acknowledges that many countries have put in place specific measures to support employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities. These include vocational rehabilitation and employment services, job training, counseling, job search assistance, and job placement, which can develop or restore the capabilities of individuals with disabilities and allow them to compete in the labor market and facilitate their inclusion. Additionally, some countries have antidiscrimination laws in place to prevent discrimination in the workplace. While these supports are available across a number of countries, the report provides a number of recommendations for the creation of opportunities for individuals with disabilities in the employment market. These include:

• Enacting and enforcing effective anti-discrimination legislation
• Ensuring that public policies are harmonized to provide incentives and support for individuals with disabilities seeking employment, and for employers who hire them
• Promoting awareness among employers of their duty not to discriminate, and of the means available to them to support the employment of individuals with disabilities
• Making mainstream vocational guidance and training programs accessible to individuals with disabilities
• Making mainstream employment services available to individuals with disabilities on an equal basis with other job seekers
• Developing services tailored to individual and community needs, rather than services of a “one-size-fits-all” nature
• Setting up disability management programs to support the return to work of employees who become disabled
• Developing partnerships with local employment agencies, educational institutions, skill training programs, and social enterprises to build a skilled workforce that includes individuals with disabilities
• Ensuring that all supervisors and human resource personnel are acquainted with the requirements for accommodation and non-discrimination with regard to individuals with disabilities.

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World Report on Disability: Education

Among the range of topics addressed in the World Report on Disability is a chapter on the education of children and adults with disabilities. The report notes that education is a key contributor to human capital formations, and a determinant of personal wellbeing and welfare. Thus, the exclusion of children with disabilities from educational systems can potentially lead to fewer employment opportunities and increased susceptibility to poverty in adulthood. It is imperative that children with disabilities be allowed equal access to quality education to enable them to reach their full potential.

As noted in Article 24 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, chapter 7 of the World Report on Disability stresses the rights of individuals with disabilities to education and documents the barriers these individuals often face – both at the policy and practical level. At the policy level, barriers include: education falling under different government responsibilities; lack of legislation, policy, target, and plans; and inadequate resources. At a practical level, children with disabilities can experience difficulty at schools where there is inflexible curriculum or inadequate support for training and support for teachers; physical or attitudinal barriers; or there may be issues related to bullying and abuse.

Children with disabilities may experience difficulty gaining access to education, as noted in the World Health Survey. Out of the 51 countries in the analysis, a reported 50.6 percent of males with disability have completed primary school, compared with 61.3 percent of males without disability. Additionally, reports indicate that females with disability report 41.7 percent primary school completion compared with 52.9 percent of females without disability. The Survey also found that enrollment rates differ according to disability type, and that children with physical disabilities generally fare better than those with intellectual or sensory disabilities. For example, in Burkina Faso in 2006 only 10 percent of 7- to 12-year olds with low-hearing or deafness were in school, whereas 40 percent of children with physical disabilities attended – only slightly lower than the attendance rate of children without disabilities.

The report also acknowledges the different approaches taken to provide education to individuals with disabilities. These include: the inclusion of special schools and institutions, integrated schools, and inclusive schools. The difference between inclusion in the broad and narrower sense is explored within the report, with broad inclusion meaning education of all children including those with disabilities, with common rules and procedures as dictated by the education ministry or equivalent. The narrower sense of inclusion is described as a system in which children with disabilities are educated in traditional classrooms with age-appropriate peers. The difference between these approaches can be seen in the variance that exists between countries. Across European nations, 2.3 percent of pupils within compulsory schooling are educated in a segregated setting – either a special school or a separate class within a mainstream school. Belgium and Germany in particular rely heavily on special schools in which children with disabilities are separated from their peers while Cyprus, Lithuania, Malta, Norway, and Portugal include the majority of students with disabilities in regular classes with their same-age peers.

According to the report, children with disabilities should have equal access to quality education and there is a need for a systemic and school-level change to remove physical and attitudinal barriers and provide reasonable accommodation and support services to ensure that children with disabilities have equal access to education. The Report provides a number of recommendations for the creation of inclusive education for children and adults with disabilities. These include:

• Formulate clear policies and improve data and information
• Develop a clear national policy on the inclusion of children with disabilities in education supported by the necessary legal framework
• Identify, through surveys, the level and nature of need to ensure that the correct support and accommodations can be introduced
• Establish monitoring and evaluation systems
• Share knowledge about how to achieve educational inclusion among policy- makers, educators, and families
• Adopt strategies to promote inclusion
• Focus on educating children in a fashion as close to the mainstream as possible. Do not build new special schools if no special schools exist
• Ensure an inclusive educational infrastructure
• Make teachers aware of their responsibilities towards all children and work to improve their skills for teaching children with disabilities
• Provide specialist services where necessary
• Increase investment in school infrastructure and personnel so that children with disabilities that are identified as having special educational needs obtain the required support during their education
• Make speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, and physiotherapy available to students with moderate or significant disabilities
• Support the participation and involvement of parents and family members
• Consider the introduction of teaching assistants to provide special support to children with disabilities

 

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World Report on Disability: Enabling Environments

The World Report on Disability examines a number of topics, including the necessity for enabling environments, addressed in chapter 6 of the report. Environments, whether physical, social, or attitudinal can present barriers people with disabilities or can help to foster their participation and inclusion in society. In line with the social model of disability, this approach places an emphasis on society’s barriers to individuals with disabilities that prevent their participation in their community, rather than their individual disabilities.

Just as Article 9 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) stresses the importance of ensuring access of persons with disabilities on an equal basis with others “to the physical environment, to transportation, to information and communications, including information and communications technologies and systems, and to other facilities and services open or provided to the public, both in urban and in rural areas,”  chapter 6 of the World Report focuses on the barriers individuals face. The report states that an accessible environment, while particularly relevant for individuals with disabilities, also has benefits to others in the general population. Curb cuts, for example, while specifically intended for use by wheelchair users, can also assist individuals pushing baby strollers. Information provided in plain language, intended to ensure that individuals with disabilities are able to understand, can also prove useful for non-native speakers of the language. In addition, stop announcements on public transit may aid travelers with low-vision or blindness, as well as those who are unfamiliar with the route. The benefits seen by individuals without disabilities may help to generate additional adaptations to ensure that environments are fully accessible.

The report describes the barriers to accessing the environment in a number of areas including: environmental barriers that prevent or limit access to buildings, roads, and transport; and barriers to information and communication and the measures needed to improve access. Access to public accommodations – buildings and roads – ensures that individuals are able to participate fully in civic life and are essential to ensuring equal access to education, healthcare, and labor market opportunities. Coupled with that, accessible transportation provides independent access to employment, education, and healthcare facilities, and to social and recreational activities. Without accessible transportation, individuals with disabilities may be excluded from or experience limited services and social contact.

The lack of accessible communication and information also affects the lives of many individuals with disabilities. Individuals with communication-related disabilities, such as those with low-hearing or deafness or speech impairments, are at a significant social disadvantage in both developing and developed countries. A survey of 114 countries carried out by the United Nations in 2005 found that many had policies on accessibility, but limited progress to ensuring inclusion of individuals with disabilities had been made. Findings indicated that of the participating nations, 54 percent reported no accessibility standards for outdoor environments and streets; 43 percent had none for public buildings; and 44 percent had none for schools, health facilities, or other public service buildings. Moreover, 65 percent had not initiated any educational programs, and 58 percent had not allocated any financial resources to accessibility. Although 44 percent of the countries had a government body responsible for monitoring accessibility for individuals with disabilities, the number of countries with ombudsmen, arbitration councils, or committees of independent experts was very low.

Under Article 9 of the CRPD, reporting on the progress toward full accessibility is now an obligation on the States who have ratified the Convention. To date over 100 States have ratified the Convention, and this measure should help to ensure good practice related to accessibility. The World Report outlines a number of good practices across different countries on improving development of accessibility standards and monitoring. For example, in Kampala Uganda, following the development of accessibility standards in association with the government, a National Accessibility Audit Team was created by the Ugandan National Associate on Physical Disability. Similarly, in Norway, after a monitoring exercise found that few local communities had carried out any accessibility planning, the government set up pilot projects around the country to make local communities better able to provide accessibility for individuals with disabilities. Enabling environments for individuals with disabilities requires a commitment at all levels from policy makers to town and city planers. Individuals with disabilities must also be included in advising, monitoring, and evaluating.

The Report provides a number of recommendations on creating enabling environments, these are summarized below.

• Develop and mandate minimum national standards. Full compliance should be required for new construction of building and roads that serve the public.
• Ensure that accessibility policies and standards meet the needs of all individuals with disabilities.
• Monitor and evaluate accessibility laws and standards. For example, use design reviews and inspections and participatory accessibility audits.
• Increase awareness-raising to challenge ignorance and prejudice surrounding disability. Personnel working in public and private services should be trained to treat customers and clients with disabilities on an equal basis and with respect.
• Adopt of universal design for buildings and roads that serve the public
• Introduce accessible transportation as part of the overall legislation on disability rights.
• Identify strategies to improve the accessibility of public transport, including ensuring that developing countries have a strategic plan with priorities and a series of increasing goals can make the most of limited resources. Policy and standards on access should be flexible to account for differences between rural and urban areas.

 

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