Children with Disabilities

A disability includes a physical impairment such as mobility, hearing, visual, and language difficulties, and developmental delays which affect a person’s behaviour, emotional expression, and learning abilities. It includes mild to severe disabilities, from cerebral palsy, paralysis and amputation, to blindness, deafness, autism, and dyslexia. Children may be born with an impairment, or develop one as a result of disease, abuse, or an injury, e.g. many children are the victims of shootings, bombings, and explosions in conflict affected areas.

The degree of disability a person experiences is frequently related to society’s adaptation to meet the needs of people with varying abilities. This is known as the social model of disability which highlights the role of the environment in reducing or increasing the ability of individuals to participate equally in everyday life. For example, a person in a wheelchair has the impairment of not being able to walk. The disability, however, may be that he cannot take up services due to a lack of building access. Protection workers must consider any additional needs or risk factors a person may have as a result of his impairment and disability. Children in developing countries are more vulnerable to disability since poverty and conflicts increase the incidence of impairments, and reduce the provision of necessary health, education, social services, and adaptive provisions to help include children of all abilities.

Children with impairments or special needs are highly vulnerable to discrimination, abandonment, abuse, exploitation, injury and death, since they are more reliant on the cooperation and support of others to meet their basic needs, and may be less able to express their wishes. In some cultures, children with special needs are actively excluded from participating in society since they may be viewed as a source of shame, or unworthy of care and protection.

Government policies should seek to reduce the incidence of injuries and diseases via adequate health care, including education, immunizations, nutrition, and sanitation. All programming and policies for children should promote the social inclusion of children with disabilities at every level. Children should benefit from the reduction of physical and social barriers, adaptation of services and/or rehabilitation assistance in order to enable them to participate as fully as possible in their communities. This includes family support, health facilities, access to education, and respite services to enable children to fulfill their potential. Children of all abilities must be empowered to express their views and to influence their own lives.

The resources in this section focus on children with disabilities in developing countries, and those affected by conflict. They highlight their vulnerability to exclusion and abuse, and provide examples of projects to address the needs of children with special needs.

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ARC resource pack: Study material - Critical issue module 3: Children with disabilities

ARC, 2009

This module does not attempt to address all areas that affect children with disabilities in depth but aims to support the development of skills and knowledge in relation to emergency aspects, and to provide information and links for facilitators and trainers who require more detailed resources and guidance.

Violence prevention: the evidence

WHO and Liverpool John Moores University, 2009

This report brings together an eight-part series of briefings on the evidence for interventions to prevent interpersonal and self-directed violence. By spotlighting evidence for the effectiveness of interventions, the series provides clear directions for how violence prevention funders, policy makers and programme implementers can boost the impact of their violence prevention efforts.

Orphan Care in Russia

Victoria Schmidt, 2009

Current public opinion about the residential care system in contemporary Russia is extremely negative. A majority of Russians, both citizens and professionals, consider that family placement is the best arrangement for orphaned children.

Preparing for the Journey: A Cooperative Approach to Service Provision for Children with Intellectual Disabilities in Cambodia

Jennifer Carter , 2008

The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of the challenges and needs of children with intellectual disabilities, their families, and service providers.

Torment not Treatment: Serbia’s Segregation and Abuse of Children and Adults with Disabilities

Mental Disability Rights International, 14 Nov 2007

This report is the product of an investigation spanning four years by Mental Disability Rights International (MDRI) into the human rights abuses perpetrated against institutionalized children and adults in Serbia. From July 2003 to August 2007, MDRI documented a broad array of human rights violations against people with disabilities, segregated from society and forced to live out their lives in institutions.

Understanding, preventing and minimizing consequences of childhood disability in rural Cambodia

Betsy VanLeit PhD, Project Manager for Handicap International Belgium and Assistant Professor, University o f New Mexico, 01 May 2007

This presentation given to the World Bank in May 2007 describes a study conducted in Cambodia on the situation and needs of children with disabilities and their families.

Newsletter of the European Coalition for Community Living

European Coalition for Community Living, 01 Mar 2007

The third newsletter of the European Coalition for Community Living. Articles focus on good practices in providing care for children with disabilities.

Promoting the Rights of Children with Disabilities: Innocenti Digest No. 13

UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre, 2007

A report on the situation of the millions of children globally with disabilities, and the challenges faced in realizing their human rights. It gives an overview of international standards, and strategies for advancing the social inclusion of children with disabilities in their families, schools, communities, and wider society.

How-to Guide: Inclusive Education for Children with Disabilities

Catholic Relief Services, 2007

A ‘How-to’ Guide, based on the experiences of CRS/Vietnam, that provides practical strategies and steps developing countries can take to build inclusive education programmes for children with disabilities.

The Child Protection System in Azerbaijan: Situation Analysis: Resources, Referral Mechanisms, Gaps and Risks Seen from a Child Rights Perspective

Cristina Roccella, 2007

Analyzes emerging protection problems and priorities of children living in Azerbaijan. Drafts a map of the institutional system related to child welfare at a national level.