Nothing about us without us - disability inclusive development
Shilpy,32, from Bangladesh: “In decision making on disasters people with disabilities must be included.”
Disability inclusion is fundamental to development work. It is a powerful tool for reducing poverty, increasing the effectiveness of aid and is a development goal in its own right. This International Day of People with Disabilities, we’re proud to talk about the importance of disability inclusive development.
Did you know?
15% of the world’s people are living with a disability.
80% of people living with a disability are in the developing world, and 60% live in the Asia Pacific Region.
1 out of 5 of the poorest of the poor have a disability.
And all these numbers are likely to increase.
Disability is a cause and a consequence of poverty. This means, if you are living with a disability, you are more likely to live in poverty, and if you live in poverty you are more likely to develop a disability. People with disabilities face discrimination and barriers to education, employment and access to services, leaving them more vunerable to experienceing poverty. People living in poverty are more likely to be malnourished, lack access to health care, work in risky jobs and live in unsafe housing, which increases the likelihood of disability.
The cycle between disability and poverty can be broken. Key to the concept of disability inclusion is just that: the inclusion of people with disabilities , especially in development initiatives. Good Return is committed to the inclusion of people with disabilities in our mission to enable those living in poverty to achieve economic empowerment through responsible financial inclusion and capability development. This includes partnering and consulting with disability organisations throughout the countries we operate in, ensuring people with disabilities have a voice and are involved in the decision making activities that impact their lives.
Importantly, the overwhelming majority of people with disabilities have the capacity to have self-sustaining economic lives, yet they continue to be excluded. People with disabilities have to fight and overcome a range of social and physical barriers to access finance. Good Return’s Consumer Awareness Financial Empowerment (CAFE) program in Cambodia is working with Cambodian disability organisations to learn about, understand, address, and overcome these barriers.
People with disabilities make up at least 10% of Cambodia’s population and are commonly excluded from economic life, leaving them dependent on family and friends; they are more likely to live in poverty.
Meeting Seng Nhaep
Seng Nhaep has worked at the Phnom Penh Centre for Independent Living (PPCIL) - a Cambodian disability organisation that promotes equal opportunities for people with disabilities through its independent living movement - for almost 9 years. Working as an advocate and team leader it’s hard to imagine him as anything but the confident, charismatic man he is.
Sean Nhaep credits PPCIL for helping him gain control of his life after losing his confidence following an accident. Sean Nhaep was a high school literacy teacher, but after his accident he became withdrawn; speaking only to his family, he didn’t leave his house for 10 years. Through PPCIL, Sean Nhaep met an American man living with the same disability. This recognition, experience and the PPCIL team encouraged him to get back out into the world, and changed his life.
Good Return is working closely with PPCIL, piloting the My Money Tracker app, a free tool for smartphones designed to help Cambodians manage their money and plan for the future. Both organisations are working to ensure that people with disabilities are involved in the testing of this important financial tool, helping to make it as accessible as possible.
Seng Nhaep plans to use the My Money Tracker tool to track the income generated by the sale of cookies, cashews and other goods manufactured by PPCIL’s factory. Seng Nhaep says the icons used in My Money Tracker are, “... simple and it’s easy to use. It should help me to track the money that comes in and out, and the remaining money we have each day. It should also help to track who’s taken credit.” He plans to learn to use My Money Tracker and show his relatives who also run small businesses, because he believes it will help them too and thinks the features are easy to understand.
As for the future? Seng Nhaep says, “For me, my dream is to see our government integrate personal assistance for people with disabilities, like they do in Korea or Japan”. He wants the government to support people with severe impairments, and he wants to see people with a disability more widely supported.
The need for Financial Education
Exclusion from, or lack of effective education means people with disabilities are more likely to have low financial literacy. This exclusion has the double impact of limiting access to employment and finance, and undermining their aspirations, resulting in a lack of self confidence.
What is Good Return doing to include people who have a disability?
Good Return’s Consumer Awareness Financial Empowerment (CAFE) program in Cambodia is currently working with a number of disability organisations to ensure that disability considerations are integrated into the program, ensuring that people with disabilities have access to the same opportunities as the rest of society. Working with the Cambodian Disabled People’s Organisation and multiple community based disability organisations, Good Return is adapting its core CAFE Face to Face training to be as inclusive as possible of people living with a disability.
In recognition that only 0.5% of microfinance customers are people with disabilities, despite 80-85% having the ability to use and benefit from such services, Good Return has partnered with Chamroeun Microfinance’s Credit Plus Department to implement the ‘Education and Access - Responsible Finance for People with Disabilities’ project. This project aims to create an accessible financial pipeline with Good Return providing accessible financial education, building the skills, capacity and confidence of people with disabilities to make informed financial decisions and Chamroeun Microfinance working to ensure their offices are accessible, staff are trained in disability inclusion and financial products are tailored to the needs of people with disabilities in Cambodia. All while ensuring that people with disabilities are involved in every step of the design and implementation of the project.
How can we ensure everyone is included?
Here are some simple tips to aid your disability inclusion efforts:
Remember: Every person is a whole person regardless of how they interact with the world. Focus on what people with disabilities need to do, what tools they use, and avoid making assumptions.
Everyone is different and has individual preferences - ask people what works for them, and respect their wishes.
Contact your attendees before you hold any events or training to enquire about their access needs. This includes being ready to adapt activities on the day, if necessary.
When designing an event, project or program, make sure to consult and involve people with disabilities in the process.
Disability Inclusion is fundamental to the development industry. Development cannot succeed if people with disabilities are excluded. As disability inclusion gains traction around the world, it’s important to remember that it is everyone’s responsibility. People with disabilities deserve and are entitled to all the same opportunities as everyone else - and we can all help to ensure this becomes a reality.
NB There is no image of Seng Nhaep within this article