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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Disability Measurement in Residential Care Facilities in Kenya and its Role within Case Management

Changing the Way We Care (CTWWC), 11 May 2023

Though research has been conducted on children with disabilities and on children in residential care settings, the intersections of these two topics has yet to be explored in depth. Notably, there is a lack of information surrounding disability measurement within residential care settings, highlighting a gap in the literature. It is estimated that a child with a disability is 17 times more likely to be placed in an institutionalized care setting than a child without a disability, and girls are more likely to be placed in an institution than boys. This report details research conducted in Kenya.

UNICEF Disability Inclusion Policy and Strategy (DIPAS) 2022-2030

UNICEF, 01 Feb 2023

UNICEF's DIPAS is a roadmap for greater cross-sectoral coordination for disability inclusion to be mainstreamed across the organization at every level to meet the needs of the world’s 240 million children with disabilities.

Vus, Pris en Compte et Inclus: Utiliser les Données Pour Mettre en Lumière le Bien-être des Enfants Handicapés - Résumé Analytique

UNICEF, 01 Feb 2023

L’objectif du présent rapport est de promouvoir l’utilisation de ces données afin de rendre les enfants handicapés davantage visibles et de mieux comprendre leurs expériences de vie.

Seen, Counted, Included: Using Data to Shed Light on the Well-Being of Children with Disabilities

UNICEF, 01 Feb 2023

Millions of children with disabilities around the globe continue to be left behind, despite the near-universal ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the call for action embedded in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with

Insights from Moldova: Closing of a Residential Institution

Changing the Way We Care, 01 Feb 2023

After 60 years of serving as a residential institution for children with disabilities, the Hîncești Auxiliary Boarding school (SIA Hîncești) in Moldova closed its doors to children in May 2022. The closing of Hîncești SIA serves as a harbinger for what is possible for other institutions for children with disabilities in Moldova and around the world.

Learning Brief: Disability Inclusion in Care Reform

Changing the Way We Care, 01 Feb 2023

This learning brief was developed as part of the CTWWC 2022 annual report and shares learning from Kenya and beyond. It is intended to help other practitioners understand how disability inclusion happens by sharing examples of practice.

Reconocidos, Contabilizados, Incluidos: Utilizar los Datos para Arrojar Luz Sobre el Bienestar de los Niños y Las Niñas Con Discapacidad - Resumen

UNICEF, 01 Feb 2023

El informe tiene como objetivo promover el uso de estos datos con el propósito de dar más protagonismo a los niños y niñas con discapacidad y de ese modo lograr una conciencia más plena de sus vivencias.

Seen, Counted, Included: Using Data to Shed Light on the Well-being of Children with Disabilities - Executive Summary

UNICEF, 01 Feb 2023

The report’s objective is to promote the use of these data to make children with disabilities more visible, bringing about a fuller understanding of their life experiences.

Perspective din Moldova: Închiderea unei Instituții Rezidențiale

Changing the Way We Care, 01 Feb 2023

După 60 de ani de activitate în calitate de instituție rezidențială pentru copii cu dizabilități, Școala-Internat Auxiliară Hîncești (SIA Hîncești) din Moldova și-a închis, în cele din urmă, ușile în mai 2022. Închiderea SIA Hîncești și reintegrar

Learning Brief: Kenya County Disability Networks & Care Reform

Changing the Way We Care, 01 Feb 2023

This learning brief shares learning from Kenya around the barriers that contribute to family separation for children with disabilities and how disability networks are working to create a supportive environment for family-based care for these children.