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By John M. Williams
The first ever World report on disability, produced jointly by the World Health Organization and the World Bank, suggests that more than a billion people in the world have a disability.
The disabilities include blindness, chronic pain, deafness, limb loss, speech impairments, limb loss, paralysis and intellectual disabilities.
Released last week, in New York at the United Nations headquarters, the 350 page-
report stated that the problems faced by people with disabilities are worsened by poverty and other obstacles, including stigma, architectural barriers, lack of legal protection, the cost of devices and assistance, and the lack of knowledge by others on interacting with people with disabilities.
The report states that the conditions faced by people with disabilities will worsen until governments acknowledge disability and tackle the challenges.
Situations contributing to the growth of disabilities in countries are economics and age. As people’s income worldwide rise so does diabetes, arthritis, cancers, and other disabling conditions.’
The longer we live the more prone we are to age related disabilities such as blindness, hearing loss, loss of mobility, memory decline and other disabilities.
People with disabilities have generally poorer health, lower education achievements, fewer economic opportunities and higher rates of poverty than people without disabilities. The report provides the best available evidence about what works to overcome barriers to health care, rehabilitation, education, employment, and support services, and to create the environments which will enable people with disabilities to flourish. The report ends with a concrete set of recommended actions for governments and their partners.
This pioneering World report on disability will make a significant contribution to implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. At the intersection of public health, human rights and development, the report is set to become a "must have" resource for policy-makers, service providers, professionals, and advocates for people with disabilities and their families.
The report is available in Braille and for people with intellectual disabilities there is a version consisting of icons and captions.
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