Disability

21 February 2018

People with disability are among the most marginalized groups in the world. People with disability have poorer health outcomes, lower education achievements, less economic participation and higher rates of poverty than people without disability.

Disability is now understood to be a human rights issue. People are disabled by society, not just by their bodies. These barriers can be overcome, if governments, nongovernmental organizations, professionals and people with disability and their families work together. The WHO/World Bank World report on disability shows the way forward.

CBM/A. Einberger
A group of children smiling, around a child in wheel chair

Over a billion people live with some form of disability

This corresponds to about 15% of the world's population. Between 110-190 million adults have very significant difficulties in functioning. Rates of disability are increasing, due to population ageing and the global increase in chronic health conditions.

WHO/C. de Bode
An old man in Tanzania, having his blood pressure checked

Disability disproportionately affects vulnerable populations

Lower-income countries have a higher prevalence of disability than higher-income countries. Disability is more common among women, older people and children and adults who are poor.

UN/M. Dormino
Two men sitting on a bench in Bamako's Central Detention Centre, Mali

People with disability often do not receive needed health care

Half of people with disability cannot afford health care, compared to a third of people without disability. People with disability are more than twice as likely to find health-care providers' skills inadequate. People with disability are four times more likely to report being treated badly and nearly three times more likely to be denied health care.

UN/A. González Farran
A woman's hand over a student's helping write on black board in North Darfur, Sudan

Children with disability are less likely to attend school than children without disability

Education completion gaps are found across all age groups in all settings, with the pattern more pronounced in poorer countries. For example, the difference between the percentage of children with disability and the percentage of children without disability attending primary school ranges from 10% in India to 60% in Indonesia.

UN/F. Durante
A young man with disability pouring clay into moulds

People with disability are more likely to be unemployed than people without disability

Global data show that employment rates are lower for men with disability (53%) and women with disability (20%) than for men without disability (65%) and women without disability (30%). In OECD countries, the employment rate of people with disability (44%) was slightly over half that for people without disability (75%).

UN/A. González Farran
A blind man walks with a cane and suitcase in North Darfur, Sudan

People with disability are vulnerable to poverty

People with disability have worse living conditions–including insufficient food, poor housing, lack of access to safe water and sanitation–than people without disability. Because of extra costs such as medical care, assistive devices or personal support, people with disability are generally poorer than people without a disability with similar income.

UN/S. Paris
A young woman with a missing limb, sitting on a bench, as another woman sits next to her with a prosthetic leg in between them, in Haiti

Rehabilitation helps to maximize functioning and support independence

In many countries rehabilitation services are inadequate. Data from four Southern African countries found that only 26–55% of people received the medical rehabilitation they needed, while only 17–37% received the assistive devices they needed (e.g. wheelchairs, prostheses, hearing aids).

UN/J. Corash
A disabled young boy drawing a picture on the floor at the Kome School in Tokyo, Japan

People with disability can live and participate in the community

40% of people with disability do not generally have their needs met for assistance with everyday activities. In the United States of America, 70% of adults rely on family and friends for assistance with daily activities.

WHO/S. Volkov
A young man pushing another, sitting in a wheel chair down stairs, in Russia

Disabling barriers can be overcome

Governments can:

promote access to mainstream services;
invest in specific programmes for people with disability;
adopt a national strategy and plan of action;
improve staff education, training and recruitment;
provide adequate funding;
increase public awareness and understanding on disability;
strengthen research and data collection; and
ensure the involvement of people with disability in implementing policies and programmes.

ADD International/S. de Trey-White
A woman churning bicycle pedals for exercise

The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) promotes, protects and ensures the human rights for all people with disability

So far, more than 170 countries and regional integration organizations have signed the Convention, and over 130 have ratified it. The WHO/World Bank report provides the best available scientific evidence to improve the health and well-being of people with disability in line with the CRPD.

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