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The Sustainable Development Goals 2017

United Nations Secretariat, Department for Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA)
July 2017

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The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2017 reviews progress made towards the 17 Goals in the second year of implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The report is based on the latest available data. It highlights both gains and challenges as the international community moves towards full realization of the ambitions and principles espoused in the 2030 Agenda. While considerable progress has been made over the past decade across all areas of development, the pace of progress observed in previous years is insufficient to fully meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and targets by 2030. Progress has not always been equitable. Advancements have been uneven across regions, between the sexes, and among people of different ages, wealth and locales, including urban and rural dwellers. 

 

The improvement of data on difficulties faced by children with disabilities, with the introduction of a new module on child functioning for use in censuses and surveys, is noted. This tool was introduced in 2016 by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and its partners. Social protection coverage and people with disabilities is also mentionned.

Ensuring the right to equitable and inclusive quality education : Results of the ninth consultation of member states on the implementation of the UNESCO convention and recommendation against discrimination in education

UNESCO
July 2017

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The specific purpose of this report is to present the measures taken by Members States who have submitted monitoring country reports. It aims to summarize the information provided by Members States in response to the reporting guidelines, highlighting the results of the Consultation and the measures taken with a view to achieving the right to education in the context of the Sustainable Development Agenda and, in particular, SDG4.  There were 67 reports from Member States: 13 from Western European and North American States; 18 from East European States; 13 from Latin American and Caribbean States; 10 from Asian and Pacific States; 8 from African States; and 5 from Arab States. A section is presented on students with special needs.

Disability and sexuality: claiming sexual and reproductive rights.

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH MATTERS
July 2017

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The journal issue Reproductive Health Matters, vol.25, no.50, May 2017 features disability and sexuality.

 

Research article titles are:

  • Disability is not asexuality: the childbearing experiences and aspirations of women with disability in Zimbabwe
  • Exploring misinformation of family planning practices and methods among deaf people in Ghana
  • “We do not dare to love”: women with disabilities’ sexual and reproductive health and rights in rural Cambodia
  • A qualitative study to explore the barriers and enablers for young people with disabilities to access sexual and reproductive health services in Senegal
  • “Freedom to go where I want”: improving access to sexual and reproductive health for women with disabilities in the Philippines
  • The sexual and reproductive rights and benefit derived from sexual and reproductive health services of people with physical disabilities in South Africa: beliefs of non-disabled people
  • Female genital mutilation as sexual disability: perceptions of women and their spouses in Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria. 

World Blind Union Guide to the Marrakesh Treaty

HELFER, Laurence
OKEDIJI, Ruth
REICHMAN, Jerome
July 2017

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The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled (referred to as the Marrakesh Treaty or MT) is a legally binding international agreement that creates mandatory exceptions to national copyright law to protect the human rights of individuals with print disabilities. This Guide provides a comprehensive analysis of the Marrakesh Treaty, including an article-by-article analysis of key provisions, and specific legal and policy recommendations for giving effect to the provisions. The Guide views the Marrakesh Treaty as an international agreement that employs the legal doctrines and policy tools of copyright to advance human rights ends. The “Guide to the MT” provides a roadmap for a variety of audiences, including parliamentarians and policymakers, who adopt copyright legislation; judges, who may interpret the MT and its implementing legislation; and print disabled individuals and advocacy organizations, engaged in promoting and monitoring these processes.

Making the SDGs count for women and girls with disabilities

UN WOMEN
July 2017

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"In line with several critical areas under thematic review at the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development in 2017, this brief underlines the need to mainstream disability into all efforts to achieve gender equality and women’s empowerment (SDG 5); highlights key issues for ending poverty (SDG 1) and ensuring healthy lives (SDG 3) for women and girls with disabilities; and calls for closing data gaps on gender and disability"

Disability research and capacity development - Newsletter July 2017

Disability Research and Capacity Development (DRD)
July 2017

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This newsletter includes reports on: awareness and support skills training for university students; a workshop on gender and disability; a meeting of the scholarship and mentorship programme; a trading stock company providing favourable conditions for employees with disabilities; training courses on laws and policies to support people with disabilities; and a workshop on equality and inclusion.

A guide for ensuring equity and inclusion in education

UNESCO
July 2017

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This guide is intended to support countries in embedding inclusion and equity in educational policy. It supports Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 on education calls for inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all by 2030. The guide is intended for use primarily by key government education policy-makers working with key stakeholders. The guide provides an assessment framework that can serve to: review how well equity and inclusion currently figure in existing policies; decide which actions are needed to improve policies and their implementation towards equitable and inclusive education systems; and monitor progress. The guide includes evidence that informs the assessment framework, examples of initiatives that are contributing to more inclusive and equitable education systems in different parts of the world, and recommendations for further reading. 

Disability and conditional social security benefits : Journal of Poverty and Social Justice, special issue, vol. 25, no.2, June 2017

GEIGER, Ben Baumberg
Ed
July 2017

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This special issue of the Journal of Poverty & Social Justice has two aims. Firstly to provide new evidence on the implementation and impacts of conditionality for disabled benefits claimants in order to provide an empirical foundation for the contested claims on both sides of this debate and secondly to prompt further research in this area. 

Article titles in this issue are:

  • Benefits conditionality for disabled people: stylised facts from a review of international evidence and practice
  • Does sanctioning disabled claimants of unemployment insurance increase labour market inactivity? An analysis of 346 British local authorities between 2009 and 2014 
  • Consequences of activation policy targeting young adults with health-related problems in Sweden and Denmark
  • Assessment of work ability in competing strands of social insurance: the German case 
  • Welfare conditionality and disabled people in the UK: claimants' perspectives
  • The bedroom tax in the Supreme Court: implications of the judgment 

Disability measurement and the Washington Group on Disability Statistics : NGO training agenda

WASHINGTON GROUP ON DISABILITY STATISTICS
June 2017

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Four videos are provided which are live recording of an Introductory training for Non-Government Organisations on disability measurement

Session 1 Video: Overview of Disability Measurement and the Washington Group Short Set (1h 35m)

Session 2 Video: Collecting Disability Data (1h 42m)

Session 3 Video: The Importance & Feasibility of Disaggregation by Disability Status (57m)

Session 4 Video: The WG/UNICEF Module on Child Functioning (1h 14m)

 

Still left behind: Pathways to inclusive education for girls with disabilities

ABU AL-GHAIB, Ola
ANDRAE, Karen
GONDWE, Rachel
LEONARD CHESHIRE DISABILITY
June 2017

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This progress review aims to: provide a synthesis of the understanding of the additional barriers that girls with disabilities face in education; highlight effective or promising approaches and programmes addressing these barriers, including policies and legislation; point to gaps in evidence; and provide recommendations on a way forward. An internet search of relevant grey and academic literature on gender-responsive inclusive education was carried out. A search of websites of (inter) national non-governmental organisations, donors, and research institutions on the subject of gender-responsive inclusive education was conducted. In addition, requests for information on gender-responsive inclusive education interventions were submitted to platforms such as the Pelican Initiative and the Gender and Development Network UK. Subsequent referral to contact persons was followed up via email and phone with requests for sharing of studies, evaluations, progress reports, and other relevant documents of interventions.

Support and guidance for the report provided by UN Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI)

Central African Republic: People with disabilities at high risk - 4 years into conflict, more support, protection needed

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH
June 2017

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People with disabilities in the Central African Republic have faced violent attacks, forced displacement, and ongoing neglect in the humanitarian response, Human Rights Watch said today. A peace accord signed on June 19, 2017, offers a chance to help this abused and marginalized group.

People with disabilities face high risk from violent attacks and forced displacement and are being neglected by aid groups as conflict in the Central African Republic intensifies.

New Human Rights Watch research in the country shows that people with a range of disabilities are often unable to flee violence, are especially vulnerable to attack while trying to flee, and face unsafe and unhealthy conditions in displacement camps.

This video and blog page report on the problems faced by people with disabilities as conflict in the Central African Republic intensifies. People with a range of disabilities are often unable to flee violence, are especially vulnerable to attack while trying to flee, and face unsafe and unhealthy conditions in displacement camps.

The right to live independently and be included in the community : Addressing barriers to independent living across the globe

ANGELOVNA-MLADENOVA, Lilia
June 2017

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"This reports looks at the main barriers to the realisation of disabled people’s right to live independently and be included in the community, which is set out in Article 19 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). They are grouped in seven broad areas: (1) misunderstanding and misuse of key terms, (2) negative attitudes and stigma, (3) lack of support for families, (4) prevalence of institutional services, (5) barriers related to community support services, (6) barriers in mainstream services and facilities, and (7) barriers, concerning other CRPD provisions, with effect on Article 19. A set of recommendations is also provided, outlining measures required to address these barriers"

Water justice, gender and disability : South Asian Water Studies (SAWAS), special issues, vol.5, no.4, June 2017

CLEMENT, Florian
NICOL, Alan
CORDIER, Sylvie
Eds
June 2017

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The papers in this volume on gender, persons with disabilities and WASH in South Asia help to provide important pointers on ways forward. A common thread throughout the four articles is that a constellation of challenges still exists, from 'exclusion' through prejudice at different levels, to institutional realities that render policy and other instruments ineffective in practice. In some cases, even, there remains a complete absence of key legal and policy instruments.  

Titles of the articles in this issue are: 

  • Planning for inclusion: exploring access to WASH for women and men with disabilities in Jaffna District, Sri Lanka
  • Breaking down Barriers: Gender and Disability in Access to Agricultural Water Management in Nepal
  • The Gender Gap between Water Management and Water Users: Evidence from Southwest Bangladesh​
  • Are policies enough to mainstream Gender in water and sanitation programs? Experiences from community managed drinking water supply schemes in India

Global Report on the participation of organisations of persons with disabilities (DPOs) in VNR Processes

INTERNATIONAL DISABILITY ALLIANCE
2017

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Within the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities, a working group was created on the Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) aimed at raising awareness among Organisations of Persons with Disabilities (DPOs) to engage with their governments in the national consultation processes on SDG implementation, with particular focus on the 2017 44 volunteering countries. The VNR working group are compiling an outcome document reflecting the work that DPOs carried out at the national, regional and global levels. A comprehensive report – called the Global Report on DPO Participation in VNR Processes – will be issued in draft form prior to the HLPF and will be updated afterward with concrete findings. 

The report will showcase the national level DPO work carried out in different regions as well as best practices and challenges, and will serve as a case study for Member States. It will additionally be useful for DPOs as a model to engage with their government. The case study will feature the volunteering countries of Denmark, Italy, Sweden, Nigeria, Togo, Kenya, Ethiopia, Argentina, El Salvador, Peru, Guatemala, Indonesia, Bangladesh, India and Jordan.

Immigration and disability / Review of disability studies - Vol 13, No 2

THE REVIEW OF DISABILITY STUDIES
June 2017

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The latest issue of the Review of Disability Studies is out! Dive into this issues' topics ranging for Disability Studies in Physical Recreation, Social Participation of Children, Immigrants in Australia, Anxiety as a Tool for Critical Disability Studies, Film Genre and Mental Illness and much more.

Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development, Vol 28, No 2 (2017), summer 2017

June 2017

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6 research articles

  • Teachers’ Perceptions of Disabilities on the Island of Roatán, Honduras 
  • Access to Services and Barriers faced by People with Disabilities: A Quantitative Survey
  • Parent Empowerment in Early Intervention Programmes of Children with Hearing Loss in Mumbai, India 
  • Analysis of Bibliography on Specific Learning Disability in India 
  • Positive and Negative Impacts on Caregivers of Children with Intellectual Disability in India 
  • Effect of Multidisciplinary Intervention on Clinical Outcomes of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Mumbai, India 

 

 doi 10.5463

The right to live independently and be included in the community : Addressing barriers to independent living across the globe

ANGLELOVA-MLADENOVA, Lilia
June 2017

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This reports looks at the main barriers to the realisation of disabled people’s right to live independently and be included in the community, which is set out in Article 19 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). They are grouped in seven broad areas: (1) misunderstanding and misuse of key terms, (2) negative attitudes and stigma, (3) lack of support for families, (4) prevalence of institutional services, (5) barriers related to community support services, (6) barriers in mainstream services and facilities, and (7) barriers, concerning other CRPD provisions, with effect on Article 19. A set of recommendations is also provided, outlining measures required to address these barriers.

The recommendations in this report – presented below - were shared with the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities when they were drafting the General Comment on Article 19. They can be used by governments and civil society organisations, alongside the General Comment, to identify actions needed to implement Article 191 CRPD.

 

Healthcare provider's attitude towards disability and experience of women with disabilities in the use of maternal healthcare service in rural Nepal

DEVKOTA, Hridaya Raj
KETT, Maria
GROCE, Nora
MURRAY, Emily
June 2017

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BACKGROUND:
Women with disabilities are less likely to receive maternal healthcare services compared to women without disabilities. While few studies have reviewed healthcare experience of women with disabilities, no studies have been conducted to understand provider's attitude towards disability in Nepal, yet the attitude and behaviour of healthcare providers may have a significant influence on aspects of care and the use of service by women with disabilities. This study examines healthcare provider's attitudes towards disability and explores the experience of women with disabilities in maternal healthcare service utilization during pregnancy and childbirth.

METHOD:
The study used mixed method approach. An attitude survey was conducted among 396 healthcare providers currently working in public health facilities in Rupandehi district of Nepal. For additional insight, eighteen in-depth interviews with women with disabilities who used maternal healthcare services in a healthcare facility within the study district in their last pregnancy were undertaken. The Attitude Towards Disabled Persons (ATDP) scale score was used to measure the attitudes of healthcare providers. For quantitative data, univariate and multivariate analysis using ANOVA was used to understand the association between outcome and independent variables and qualitative analysis generated and described themes.

Reproductive Health, 2017

A new way to measure child functioning

UNICEF
WASHINGTON GROUP
May 2017

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"In recognizing the need for a set of questions that would produce internationally comparable data on children, the Washington Group formed a subgroup in 2009 that is chaired by the National Statistical Office of Italy (ISTAT). UNICEF joined the subgroup in 2011.

The first main activity of the subgroup was the development of a short set of questions to reflect current thinking on child functioning for inclusion in censuses and surveys. The new module uses the ICF-CY as the conceptual framework and relies on a functional approach to measuring disability.

The Washington Group/UNICEF Module on Child Functioning, finalized in 2016, covers children between 2 and 17 years of age and assesses functional difficulties in different domains including hearing, vision, communication/comprehension, learning, mobility and emotions. To better reflect the degree of functional difficulty, each area is assessed against a rating scale. The purpose is to identify the subpopulation of children who are at greater risk than other children of the same age or who are experiencing limited participation in an unaccommodating environment. The set of questions is intended for use in national household surveys and censuses"

The module is being translated into multiple languages. Supporting documentation, including a concept note, tabulation plan, templates for reporting, guidelines for interviewers and training materials are also available.

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