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Children with disabilities

Some 93 million children ─ or 1 in 20 of those aged 14 or younger ─ live with a moderate or severe disability of some kind. Most societies are inaccessible for children with disabilities. Prejudices, negative attitudes, traditions and inadequate knowledge and poor resourcing present obstacles for children with disabilities in accessing their rights.

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN CRC) is the foundation for Save the Children work. UN CRC states that children with disability have the same rights as other children. This means that they have the right to grow up in an environment that supports their development, that they have the right to express their opinions, to be heard and that they are entitled to education. The rights of children with disabilities are reinforced in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). States which have signed these conventions are responsible for promoting and fulfilling the rights of all children including children with disabilities.

Article 2 of the UN CRC, which is one of four fundamental principles, prescribes that no one should be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, sex or disability. However, discrimination and exclusion are common for the majority of people with disability, particularly children. They are often an invisible group in important policies and plans. National policies and plans on education seldom have enough focus on children with disability and their inclusion. Another challenge is that children with disability are often considered as victims and that they lack the capacity to influence their own situation. 

Save the Children advocates for the realization of the rights of children with disability and to ensure that they have the same opportunities, receive proper support and education and that they are empowered to influence their own situation.

Documents (289)

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  1. Risk Communication and Community Engagement for COVID-19: Engaging with children and adults with disabilities

    When engaging with communities and populations in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is crucial to understand the needs of specific groups who might experience obstacles to accessing information, such as children and adults with disabilities. Infor

    Publication year: 2020 Publisher(s): UNICEF, United Nations Children's Fund

  2. Every Child Has the Right to Education: Promoting Inclusive Education for Every Last Child in Mongolia Awareness Campaign

    Save the Children Japan, Mongolia office has been implementing a three-years Inclusive Education project, ‘Promoting Inclusive Education for Every Last Child in Mongolia’, which started from March 2018 and will continue till March 2021. Target areas of th

    Publication year: 2020 Publisher(s): Save the Children Mongolia | Save the Children Japan

  3. A Rapid Assessment of the Status of Children With Disabilities in Somalia

    Reports show that persons with disabilities in Somalia struggle to be recognized, gain access to resources, and feel valued in their community. Through the lack of explicit inclusion, they are often denied access to water, food, sanitation and accommodati

    Publication year: 2020 Publisher(s): Ministry of Women and Human Rights Development (MoWHRD) of the Federal Republic of Somalia | ... Author(s): Waithira Mbugua, Jane

  4. Pivoting to Inclusion: Leveraging lessons from the COVID-19 crisis for learners with disabilities

    The world is faced with a global education emergency of unprecedented scale. According to estimates by the World Bank, the COVID-19 pandemic, at its peak, caused more than 180 countries to mandate temporary school closures, leaving 85 percent of the world

    Publication year: 2020 Publisher(s): The World Bank Group Author(s): McClain-Nhlapo, Charlotte | Kulbir Singh, Ruchi | Martin, Anna

  5. Age, Gender and Diversity Considerations: COVID-19

    Women, older persons, survivors of gender-based violence (GBV), children, youth, persons with disabilities and LGBTI persons are often marginalized and have specific vulnerabilities that must be addressed. In addition, being a refugee or asylum-seeker oft

    Publication year: 2020 Publisher(s): UNHCR, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

  6. “Disability Is Not Weakness”: Discrimination and barriers facing women and girls with disabilities in Afghanistan

    After decades of armed conflict, Afghanistan has one of the largest populations per capita of persons with disabilities in the world.  At least one in five Afghan households includes an adult or child with a physical, sensory, intellectual, or psychosocia

    Publication year: 2020 Publisher(s): Human Rights Watch Author(s): Gossman, Patricia

  7. COVID-19 Response: Considerations for children and adults with disabilities

    In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, persons with disabilities may have increased risk for exposure, complications and death. However, previous experience has shown that children and adults with disabilities also face obstacles to access prevention an

    Publication year: 2020 Publisher(s): UNICEF, United Nations Children's Fund

  8. Brief Guidance Note: A disability-inclusive COVID-19 response

    Persons with disabilities are known to be at an increased risk of infection and complications during the COVID-19 pandemic. These risks are aggravated by numerous barriers to family crisis preparedness, a lack of access to health and protection messaging

    Publication year: 2020 Publisher(s): Global Protection Cluster | Syria Protection Cluster (Turkey)

  9. We Have a Voice Too: Case study of children with intellectual disabilities contributing to the Norwegian supplementary report on the implementation of UNCRC

    This document provides an overivew of a case study in which Save the Children Norway facilitated a child rights workshop with 13 children and young people with intellectual disabilities, where they contributed with their experiences, opinions and advice r

    Publication year: 2019 Publisher(s): Save the Children Norway

  10. Take Us Seriously! Engaging Children with Disabilities in Decisions Affecting their Lives

    Despite one of the 9 basic requirements for meaningful and ethical child participation being that it is inclusive, children with disabilities often face barriers to participation in decision making. This might be because of negative attitudes of staff or

    Publication year: 2019 Publisher(s): UNICEF, United Nations Children's Fund

  11. Shaping Health Systems to Include People with Disabilities

    The Sustainable Development Goals and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities demands a shift in health system responses to chronic disease and disability, from the medical management and cure of disability to strengthenin

    Publication year: 2019 Publisher(s): K4D, Knowledge, Evidence, and Learning for Development Author(s): Dean, Laura | Millington, Kerry A. | Thomson, Rachael | Tolhurst, Rachel

  12. Supporting Children with Disabilities in Family-Based Care

    In this two-part video, you’ll hear from Children in Families ABLE project practitioners, Sorn Sreyny and Lisa Yunker, as they share their experience of making family-based care in Cambodia inclusive for children with disabilities.  In part one, Sreyny an

    Publication year: 2019 Publisher(s): BCN, Better Care Network

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