WUNRN
WOMEN WITH DISABILITIES &
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Overview | Common Myths | Additional Resources
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The United Nations
estimates that, worldwide, only 25% of women with disabilities are in the
workforce worldwide.
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What are the
numbers of women with disabilities worldwide?
- According to the World Health Organization, women with
disabilities comprise 10% of all women worldwide. Approximately 300
million women and girls around the world have a mental and/or physical
disability.
- Globally, women make up three-fourths of the disabled
people in low- and middle- income countries; between 65% and 70% of those
women live in rural areas.
- In most Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD) countries, women report higher incidents of disability
than men.
- Conversely, the International Labor Organization (ILO)
states that women are at an increased risk of becoming disabled throughout
their lives due to neglect in healthcare, poor workforce conditions, and
gender-based violence.
What is the
situation of women with disabilities in the developing world?
- The World Bank estimates that 20% of the world's
poorest people have some kind of disability and tend to be regarded in
their own communities as the most disadvantaged. Women with disabilities
are recognized to be multiply disadvantaged, experiencing exclusion on
account of their gender and their disability.
- The ILO states that women with disabilities are at an
increased risk of being sicker, poorer, and more sociality isolated than
either men with disabilities or non-disabled women.
- According to the United Nations Development Program
(UNDP), the literacy rate for women with disabilities is as low as 1%.
- The United Nations estimates that, worldwide, only 25%
of women with disabilities are in the workforce worldwide.
- Neglect, lack of medical care and less access to food
or related resources have resulted in a higher mortality rate for girls
with disabilities. For example, in a UNICEF study in Nepal found that the
survival rate for boy children several years after they have had polio is
twice that for girl children, despite the fact that polio itself affects
equal numbers of males and females.
What are some of
the specific issues related to women with disabilities and development
programs?
- Gender-Based Violence: Women and girls with
disabilities are particularly vulnerable to abuse. For example, a small
2004 survey in Orissa, India found that virtually all of the women and
girls with disabilities were beaten at home, 25% of women with
intellectual disabilities had been raped and 6% of women with disabilities
had been forcibly sterilized.
- Rule of Law: Legal barriers exist for women with disabilities that
hamper their right to marry and found a family. For example, in Tanzania,
consent for marriage must be given "freely and voluntarily". However,
consent is not considered valid when either party has a mental disability
based on the assumption that he or she cannot fully understand the nature
of the ceremony. Similar laws exist in Cambodia and China.
- HIV/AIDS: A recent World Bank study states that women with
disabilities are at a higher risk of obtaining HIV/AIDS due to lack of
awareness and lack of access to traditional HIV/AIDS programs.
Furthermore, the folk belief that individuals with sexually transmitted
diseases, including HIV/AIDS, can rid themselves of the infection if they
have intercourse with a virgin poses a particular risk for disabled
children due to the mistaken belief that individuals with a disability are
sexually inactive - hence virgins.
- Human Trafficking: Women and girls with disabilities are at risk of being
trafficked and forced into prostitution. In Thailand, for example, UNICEF
reports that proprietors of houses of prostitution have specifically
sought out deaf girl children and adolescents, with the idea that such
young people will be less able to communicate their distress or find their
way back home in a world where neither their customers nor their employers
or fellow sex workers are able to speak sign language. In Taiwan, a recent
study found that the proportion of child prostitutes who had mild
developmental disabilities was six times greater than what might be
expected from the incidence in the general population.
What are the
barriers?
- Physical Barriers: Physical barriers exist that prevent women and girls
with disabilities from receiving various services and participating in
international development programs. For example, a recent survey in South
Africa has found that the services for battered women, with a few
exceptions, are generally not accessible or appropriate to the needs of
women with disabilities.
- Attitudinal Barriers: People with disabilities often face stigmas and
exclusion resulting from limited knowledge and understanding of the causes
of disability. For example, in India, women with physical disabilities are
not eligible to receive reproductive health services because they are
considered to have no marriage prospects.
- Organizational Barriers: Projects are often
implemented without adequate consultation from people with disabilities or
the disabled community, which can result in programs that are not
accessible or discriminate against people with disabilities.
What can be done to
better integrate people with disabilities?
- Conduct Outreach: International and national Disabled Persons Organizations
(DPOs) and disability leaders are an excellent resource and can help in
the design, implementation, and evaluation of development programs to
ensure that they are accessible to people with disabilities.
- Hire Staff, Interns, and/or Consultants with
Disabilities:
Improving diversity within the workplace improves and ensures diversity of
programs and activities.
- Ensure Accessible Facilities and Materials: Make sure that the
trainings or activities you are conducting are in an accessible venue.
Also, provide materials in alternative formats, such as documents in large
print or information on compact discs.
- Educate and Train: Conduct trainings for your staff and partners on
inclusive practices and disability awareness-raising on physical, organizational
or social barriers.
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