In 2014 NUDIPU published its ALTERNATIVE REPORT TO THE UN COMMITTEE OF EXPERTS ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES (CRPD). The report opens with an executive summary bringing out the failings of the Ugandan government. The UNCRPD was ratified on the 25th September 2008 without reservations. The government put the rights into law. Despite the good work of the Ugandan government, NUDIPU identifies the following gaps:
- The Definition of disability by the Ugandan laws places emphasis on the person with disability rather than the social and environmental barriers, contrary to the UNCRPD. Uganda should therefore harmonise its definition of disability.
- The existing laws and policies are not compliant with the UNCRPD, e.g. Derogatory language in the laws such as “unsound mind” and “lunacy”, discriminate against persons with psychosocial and intellectual disabilities and prevents them from holding public offices as well as political participation.
- Generally, the consultation of PWDs and their DPOs (disabled persons organisations) both on national and local planning and development is uncoordinated, inadequate and is not fully inclusive. As a result the special needs and interests of PWDs are invisible in national and local government plans and programmes. Government therefore must encourage effective involvement of PWDs and their DPOs at all levels of planning as required by the UNCRPD.
- Affirmative action for PWDs has not been applied to sectors such as employment, health and transport. In addition, the requirement to provide reasonable accommodation is not existent within the Ugandan legal framework.
- Accessibility is a major challenge for PWDs-- the physical infrastructure, public transport systems and information and communication remain restrictive to PWDs in participation in family and community life. Government should address accessibility barriers faced by PWDs E.G., ensuring talking-elevators and road-crossing signs for visually impaired persons, recruitment of Sign Language Interpreters in all public places, refurbishing old public buildings that are inaccessible to PWDs and ensuring that the private sector makes necessary adjustments to increase accessibility in all their services.
- There is a challenge in government to handle the plight of PWDs during situations of risk, humanitarian emergencies and recovery programmes. For example the 3,098 PWDs remaining in the Internally Displaced Peoples Camps in northern Uganda. Government should earmark part of the resources from the NUSAF (Northern
- Although Uganda established structures for public awareness, national implementation and monitoring of the UNCRPD, e.g. the Uganda Human Rights Commission, the National Council for Disability and focal points in line Ministries and Equal Opportunities Commission to ensure that disability issues are addressed, all these have insufficient funds and training to adequately implement UNCRPD provisions.
- There is limited training and deployment of professionals to support PWDs across the country. This calls for government deliberate efforts to increase on the numbers of such officials in the public sector e.g. education, health, justice, rehabilitation etc.
- Government should invest resources to raise awareness about disability and the UNCRPD by various means throughout society, including through awareness campaigns targeting the general public, and in particular persons with disabilities themselves, the media, employers, education and health professionals, among others.and by gazetting the International Day of Persons with Disabilities as a public holiday.
Likewise accessibility is an important issue. It is all very well demanding the right to education but not being able to access classes in school is another major issue. The alternative report continues:
The launch of the alternative report was covered in the 2014 article Challenges faced by CWDs.
- Government should develop and implement a policy on accessibility for persons with disabilities. The enforcement and monitoring of all regulations and provisions for accessibility should be conducted in consultation and with the participation of PWDs and their representative organisations. Government, through the Ministry of Works and Transport, should allocate resources to implement the provisions in the Persons with Disabilities Act on accessibility and the Building Control Act.
- The Ministry of Transport and Works should develop regulations to operationalise the Building Control Act of 2013 to ensure that all future building programmes meet accessibility standards. The Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets Act (PPDA) should be amended to incorporate accessibility standards as one of the criteria for awarding construction tenders.
- Government, through the Ministry of Public Service, should ensure that sign language interpreters are employed in public service to enable persons with hearing impairments to access information and services. The Communication Act should be amended to make it mandatory for media houses, especially television, to use visual captioning and sign language interpreters.
- The Ministry of Information should enforce the provision on access to information by persons with disabilities as stipulated in The Access to Information Act. Government should develop measures to train persons with disabilities and professionals in the use of different communication formats and technologies. Government should develop a communication system specific to persons with intellectual disability that includes easy read formats, simple sign language, photographs, and audio description.
Although government is committed to the principle of inclusive education, the Persons with Disabilities Act (2006) is ambiguous as it does not provide for reasonable accommodation and promotes both inclusive and Special Needs Education (SNE), which is in contravention of the UNCRPD.
In Uganda there is still lack of adequate SNE teachers and essential educational materials in primary and secondary schools, and tertiary institutions. Furthermore, SNE teachers are not included in the Public Service Code, which often affects their recruitment as SNE teachers.
There is evidence that most schools are still inaccessible; with no latrines for learners with disabilities; and some headmasters reject children with severe disabilities.
Learners with disabilities are denied Education Assessment Services during pre and actual school time, which leaves them with no intervention to address their specific educational needs.
The current school curriculum is not sensitive to the educational needs of CWDs.
There are no reliable statistics on the enrollment, type and level of vulnerability of CWDs in either primary or secondary schools to guide planning and budgeting in the education sector. This is due to lack of awareness of most school administrators and Teachers on disability.
Although the Ministry of education distributes Braille materials and equipment to schools, they are insufficient and most times irrelevant. Besides, disability categories other than people with visual impairment are not catered for.
The SNE Departments at National and district levels lack adequate resources to finance inclusive education. Also, SNE learning centres are concentrated in towns thereby neglecting the rural areas.
Majority of CWDs come from very poor families and the schools that can accommodate their educational needs are very few and often very distant (on average 150 kms). Secondly, majority of children with multiple disabilities require boarding facilities to enable them learn appropriately. However under UPE (Universal Primary Education), government does not provide for boarding fees and this diminishes these children’s opportunities for access to education.
Recommendations
- Government should expedite the transition to an inclusive education system, where SNE specialists would provide support for CWDs in regular schools and provide compulsory training for all teaching and non-teaching staff on rights of CWDs.
- Government should develop a strategy and allocate resources to develop an inclusive education system, including the transformation of boarding and SNE schools into resource centres facilitating inclusion in regular schools, as well as developing support systems and other measures to prevent the drop out of children with disabilities, both in urban and rural areas.
- Government should develop and incorporate into law and policy explicitly the obligation to provide reasonable accommodation, including conducting training on reasonable accommodation in close consultation with organisations of persons with disabilities.
- The school curriculum should be revised to take into account the educational needs of all learners, including those with disabilities. In addition, a comprehensive review of the teacher training curriculum at all levels of education should be conducted, and compulsory training on inclusive education in core curricula of teachers both pre- and in-service to provide for disability awareness, inclusive education pedagogy, sign language, Braille, easy read, and tactile training for all professionals.
- The Government must enhance accessibility of all learning institutions.
- Government should re-establish the Education Assessment and Resources Services programme (EARS) and develop a disaggregated data base on learners with disabilities so as to identify and provide the specific learning materials and support services required.
- The school curriculum should be revised to take into account the educational needs of all learners with disabilities. In addition, a comprehensive review of the teacher training curriculum at all levels of education should be conducted to provide for disability awareness, sign language, Braille, easy read, and tactile training for all professionals.
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| Kisoro Demonstration School, Kisoro |
CWDs are vital and valuable part of the society, yet most marginalised and vulnerable group of persons in Uganda. They are abused, exploited and excluded by the societies they live in, denying them of their inalienable and recognised rights.
Uganda has broadly domesticated the rights of CWDs as enshrined in both the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) which was ratified by Uganda in 1990 and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) with its optional protocol ratified by Uganda on September 25, 2008 without reservations. By so doing, Uganda committed itself to accord all rights stated in the UN human rights instruments to PWDs like all other citizens.
The provisions are recognised in the constitution of 1995 and in most of the laws and policies establishing the rights PWDs and/or children including, but not limited to the Childrens Act and PWDs Act of 2006.
In spite of the fact that the rights of CWDs are acknowledged, some of the provisions to realise them do not meet the standards expected by the CRC and the UN CRPD and as a result, CWDs have suffered disproportionately. The data relating to CWDs are scarce and to some extent, unreliable. However, the research study conducted by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) between November 2013 and February 2014, and also based on the estimates, the child disability prevalence is about 13% or 2.5 million people living with some form of disability in Uganda. Henceforth, CWDs are vulnerable to a number of challenging issues recognised as follows;
Lack of effective participation: There is limited involvement or no involvement of CWDs, their parents or guardians in formulation, dissemination and implementation of the laws and policies that relates to them. Worse to that, even the relevant persons that take care of CWDs are also not engaged in the formulation, dissemination and implementation of such laws and policies. This has, as a result, led to ignorance and ineffective implementation of the existing laws and policies that could be enforced by CWDs and their parents or guardians to cause inclusiveness. The lack of effective participation for the interest of CWDs negates Article 7 of the UN CRPD which enacts that;
‘‘In all actions concerning CWDs, the best interest of the child shall be a primary consideration’’.
Community misconceptions and stigmas: Community misconceptions and stigmas remain associated with CWDs, homes of CWDs and this in turn leads to attitudes and behaviours of neglect, isolation, abuse and marginalisation of CWDs by communities and families leading to increased discrimination. CWDs are under looked by their fellow peers in the societies that they live. Some parents have had and continue to have negative attitudes towards CWDs. A study conducted by the African Child Policy Forum in 2009 revealed that parents of CWDs and the immediate family members are the most perpetrators of violence against CWDs. Parents often hide CWDs and deny them of their rights thinking that they are totally helpless. Communities view CWDs as objects of charity worthy of no existence. This has, as a result, affected the ambitions of CWDs.
Inferiority complex: CWDs always underestimate themselves before others in society. They think they do not fit in the society like how other able bodied children do. This is visible in self pity, loss of self esteem and non- reporting of human rights violations against them. The situation is made worse by the service providers and the general public who do not appreciate that to accord CWDs their rights is an obligation. CWDs, therefore, have grown miserable and lack social networking skills.
Hunger: It is a painful reality that CWDs go through in their day today lives. Inadequate nutrition at a young age prevents CWDs from developing properly both physically and cognitive. This has led to poor health due to lack of food security.
Lack of community mobilisation and advocacy: This has been because of weak institutional framework as a result of lack of coordination between government institutions and civil society organisations of PWDs.
School related challenges: The enrolment rate of CWDs in pre-primary, primary and secondary school is very low. About 9% of CWDs attend school and only 6% of these children complete primary school and go to study in secondary schools according to a study conducted by UNICEF. The UBOS (Uganda Bureau of Statisics) statistical abstract 2010 survey states that disability is one of the major factors for children not attending school and according to the figures, 30% of the children aged 7 gave disability as one of the reasons for not going to school.
The 2002 national census estimated that about 2.5 million Ugandans were PWDs with only 2.2% of these having gone beyond primary school. The 2009 Foundation for Human Rights Initiative (FHRI) report cited rampant dropout rates of PWDs. It noted that many disabled children fall behind and discouraged by repeated failure, dropout of school. Denying CWDs their education is interpreted as denying their way of livelihood. The recognised challenges/barriers include the following;
a) The Alternative Report to the United Nations Committee of experts on the implementation of the CRPD as launched on April 27, at Hotel Africana indicates that UPE has created a high demand for secondary education, which is not being addressed by the Government. There is no universal secondary education (USE) policy and consequently there are no programmes or initiatives addressing the needs of CWDs in secondary education. According to the Uganda Population and Housing census of 2002, only 2.2% of PWDs in Uganda attained post-secondary education;
b) Financial incapacity to manage the school dues;
c) The current school curriculum is not sensitive to the educational needs of CWDs and opportunities for these children are consequently limited and restricted. Disability related concepts and studies are ignored and/ or not thought of or little included in various school curriculums. The examination system is not flexible and nationally recognised and practiced;
d) School infrastructural difficulties are unfriendly to meet the CWDs’ needs. This involves impassable and un available facilities within the reach of CWDs;
e) Negative attitude towards CWDs by teachers and their fellow colleagues/ peers has affected the retention of CWDs in schools. CWDs are presumed to be incapable, of low intelligence, without friends, no value from them. Their participations at school are presumed to be useless and of no meaning.
f) Provision of insufficient institutional materials like braille papers, Perkins braillers and braille text books to special units to suit the special learning of CWDs. The alternative report to the UN committee of experts on the implementation of the CRPD indicates indicates that no braille text books are available for secondary school. Such has directly discriminated against CWDs and prejudice their education;
g) Lack of/limited involvement in sports disability related activities for CWDs hence restricting sports ambitions and poor body healthy set up for such children.
h) Few trained sign language teachers;
i) Long distance: Schools are not within the reach of CWDs. In rural areas, transport is still a big obstacle. This is complicated by some CWDs having assistive aids and compliances to enable their movement, rough terrain, rugged and slippery roads during rainy season
Recommendations:
- Review and enforce the Uganda legal and policy frame work;
- Sensitisation and awareness and reinforce the capacities of communities and stakeholders;
- CWDs, their parents or guardians to be actively consulted on an on going basis in relation to the decisions that affect them directly or indirectly;
- Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development in conjunction with the ministry of education to establish the child rights sponsorship fund for CWDs
- School curriculum should be revised to take into account the educational needs of all children and the Government should increase funding of the special education units;
- The Government should enforce the recruitment of special needs Education Assessment and Resources Services programme (EARS) with a view to re-establishing it.
- Government to come up with the statistical information for CWDs
- Nutritional counseling and encourage immunisation of CWDs. Nutritional status of CWDs can be improved through community based growth monitoring programme like identifying malnourished CWDs and encourage their families to adopt supplementary feeding. This will help to prevent polio and under weight.
- Implement programmes in education, health and rehabilitation fields;
- The Government to partner with organisations of the child and disability movement;
- Provision of disability friendly facilities and instructional materials;
- The Government to enact a special secondary education policy to ensure consolidated and comprehensive service delivery;
- Community mobilisation and advocacy;
- Parents of CWDs to form Associations.
The alternative report on the UNCRPD is important because it deals with grassroots sentiment about human rights legislation in Uganda. The alternative report states the issues as they affect PWDs and CWDs. Though the criticisms contained in the alternative report deal with the whole UNCRPD, this blog has examined only the articles that relate to right to education. The comments and recommendations made by NUDIPU have implications for the education of all Ugandan CWDs. Most significantly the government is failing in its obligation to inform people of their rights. The right to education is of fundamental importance because it is through education that everyone can improve their status and move out of poverty. Every PWD should know and demand their rights.
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