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During armed conflict, children with disabilities are caught in a vicious cycle of violence, social polarization, deteriorating services and deepening poverty. Global estimates suggest there are between 93 million and 150 million children with disabilities under the age of 15.Given that disability is often not reported due to stigma there is reason to believe actual prevalence could be much higher. Although efforts to ensure the fulfilment of their rights have improved, girls and boys with disabilities continue to remain among the most marginalized and excluded segment of the population. This is amplified during situations of armed conflict. The barriers to full participation they face on a day-to-day basis are intensified and compounded when infrastructure is destroyed, and services and systems are compromised and made inaccessible. This results in the further exclusion and marginalization of children with disabilities, and prevents them from accessing schooling, health and psychosocial support, or a means of escape from conflict.

When systems and services break down, children are also left more susceptible to violence. Injuries sustained by many children during armed conflict may also lead to long-term impairments. There are six grave violations of children’s rights and protection in armed conflict that are on the agenda of the United Nations (UN) Security Council; killing and maiming, recruitment and use of children, rape or other sexual violence, abduction, attacks on schools or hospitals, and denial of humanitarian access. Governments around the world have committed themselves to respect, promote, and fulfil the rights of children with disabilities, including in situations of armed conflict, and progress is being made. Efforts by a broad range of actors to implement the CRPD, CRC and other human rights instruments include the development of standards to address the rights and needs of persons with disabilities in humanitarian crises, and guidance on making humanitarian response, development and peacebuilding more inclusive. Efforts to improve the collection and use of data concerning children and adults with disabilities are also underway. Yet, as this discussion paper makes clear, much more needs to be done. Investments in disability-inclusive humanitarian action and recovery from crises will pay off, contributing towards a dividend of peace built on greater equality, tolerance and justice. 

"The Gaibandha Model" good practices guide outlines a framework for successful disability-inclusive disaster risk reduction programming. It is based on the experience of CBM and its partners in implementing community-based disaster risk reduction programs in some of the most flood-affected communities in Bangladesh. The model puts people with disabilities at the center of disaster risk reduction. They are the agents for change, working with the community to improve local systems of disaster prevention, preparedness and response to become more accessible and inclusive.

The Washington Group Questions on Disability are rapidly emerging as the preferred data collection methodology by the global community for national data collection efforts on disability. However, more and more development and humanitarian actors are now using the methodology in their own data collection efforts. This is beyond the original purpose of the questions, which was to generate usable data for governments. Leonard Cheshire and Humanity & Inclusion, two international charities focussed on disability and inclusion, have worked together to share learnings of recent research studies. These studies aim to understand how the Washington Group Questions (WGQ) have been used by development and humanitarian actors and the impact of using the methodology. This summary report outlines the key findings, analysis and conclusions about the application of the Washington Group Questions in a range of contexts. The report concludes with a number of recommendations for different stakeholders.

This report presents findings from a study, based in Cambodia, designed to investigate barriers which hinder employers from employing people with disabilities and to identfy employer perspectives on the changes needed to open up more job opportunities to people with disabilities. A total of 32 people participated in in-depth semi structured interviews as part of this study: 9 employers, 10 people with disabilities and 12 representatives of NGOs working in this field. The broader context for these inclusive employment initiatives of the current and projected Cambodian economic growth, labour market needs and skills gaps is analysed.

The key objective of the Global Disability Summit was to deliver ambitious new global and national level commitments on disability inclusion. National governments and other organisations made 170 sets of commitments around the four central themes of the Summit (ensuring dignity and respect for all, inclusive education, routes to economic empowerment and harnessing technology and innovation), as well as the two cross-cutting themes (women and girls with disabilities and conflict and humanitarian contexts), and data disaggregation.

Commitments made can be viewed in full on: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/global-disability-summit-commitments

Between 2015 and 2017, Plan International Mozambique worked together with communities supporting 106 preschools in rural Mozambique. In late 2016, an approach was piloted in 18 community-based preschools to support them to be disability-inclusive. The overall goal was to increase the number of children with disabilities enrolled in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) centres delivering quality early learning opportunities. The pilot took place over a 12 month period. Summarised findings about the current status of inclusion in preschool programmes run by Plan International Mozambique, case studies and lessons learned about the inclusion of children with disabilities in these programmes are provided.  

They describe five aspects that need to be considered to remove barriers and ensure that children with disabilities can access and benefit from early childhood education:

1. Work directly with the parents of children with disabilities

2. Address individual physical and medical needs of children with disabilities

3. Build the skills and confidence of caretakers

4. Equip and build a strong implementing team

5. Build evidence on what is happening and what (doesn’t) work

Article 33 (2) of the CRPD requires state parties to have a structural framework in place to promote, protect and monitor the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Person with Disabilities (CRPD) at the national level. This “2017 Update Survey”, conducted by the German Institute for Human Rights, was done to identify the current situation how state parties implement these provisions. National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) from all continents participated in the survey. A comparison of the results of the 2017 Update Survey with those of similar survey conducted in 2011 indicates that there is a positive trend towards the strengthening of the role of National Human Rights Institution in the context of the CRPD in terms of numbers – either as the bearers of sole responsibility or responsibility shared with others. 

Annexes are provided containing concluding observations, the questionnaire used and a table of survey responses.

The aim of the Rapid Evidence Assessment (REA) is to provide an assessment of the effectiveness of interventions to improve social inclusion and empowerment for people with disabilities in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The studies included in this REA are taken from the Disability EGM prepared by the Campbell Collaboration for DFID under the auspices of the Centre for Excellence for Development Impact and Learning (CEDIL). Eligible studies included systematic reviews and impact evaluations published in English from 2000 onwards that assessed the effectiveness of interventions for people with disabilities in LMICs. The REA focused on studies identified by the EGM process that included ‘social inclusion’ or ‘empowerment’ as study outcomes and used the World Health Organization CBR matrix as a framework to categorise the different interventions and outcomes considered by the studies available. Evidence limitations and gaps were identified. 

There were 16 eligible primary studies, including studies conducted in 12 countries: Bangladesh (two studies), Brazil, Chile, China (two studies), Ethiopia, India (three studies), Kenya (two studies), Malaysia, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda, and Vietnam (two studies). Five of the studies concern interventions for people with physical or sensory impairments, nine for people with mental health or neurological conditions, and two for all disability types.

The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of older people with disabilities across a range of humanitarian settings, considering:

• whether older people with disabilities have additional needs and challenges accessing humanitarian assistance and protection
• what factors facilitate or limit access by older people with disabilities to humanitarian assistance and protection
• to what extent is humanitarian response inclusive of older people with disabilities

A systematic literature review of published studies was conducted. Key online humanitarian guidelines were explored to review how far they explicitly address older people with disabilities. Data from six population-based disability surveys comparing the living situation of older people with and without disabilities were analysed. These included databases from two crises-affected populations in Haiti (post-earthquake) and Palestine. Data from four non-humanitarian settings was also reviewed to explore more broadly the situation for older people with disabilities – India, Guatemala, Cameroon and Nepal. Interviews were held with older people with disabilities, members of their families and local key informants in two conflict-affected populations in Ndutu and Mtendeli refugee camps in Western Tanzania, and Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Eastern Ukraine to find out about their experiences. Staff of five international agencies working in humanitarian response were also interviewed. 

Findings highlight particular issues facing older people with disabilities in humanitarian crises: more risk escaping from danger;  barriers to accessing social protection and work; barriers to accessing health and rehabilitation services; barriers to accessing food and other essentials; unsuitable housing and poor living conditions;  insecurity and discrimination; threats to dignity and independence; social isolation and loneliness; risks to mental health; and missing from humanitarian response.

A table brings together the findings from the different components of the research to show the needs, risks, barriers and enablers for older people with disabilities identified in the research. Recommendations are provided to humanitarian donors, policy makers and practitioners