The ALECSO Observatory has recently released its 13th Statistical Bulletin under the title: “The Situation of Persons with Disabilities in the Arab Countries and around the World.”
The Bulletin provides data and indicators about the current situation of people with disabilities in the Arab region and elsewhere, especially their number and distribution by country, age and gender.
According to the World Bank, one billion people, or 15% of the world's population, experience some form of disability. For the Arab countries, the available data indicate that only about 2 percent of Arabs have reported having a disability, with variation among states. The lack of reporting might be attributed to cultural reasons, with little or no action taken to highlight the specific concerns of people with disabilities.
The same source indicates that 80 percent of people living with a disability live in developing countries. About 785 million of them are estimated to be of working age, but most do not work.
A study conducted in 70 countries in the world, including 4 Arab countries, found that primary school completion for children with disabilities is just 48 percent, and that as many as three out of ten children with disabilities have never been in school.
These data and indicators show that persons with disabilities in the Arab countries and around the world are among the social groups most exposed to marginalization and risks, with great difficulties experienced in accessing services of all kinds. In most cases, children with disabilities have little or no access to schools and other children’s facilities, and teachers often lack the needed training and materials to respond to their specific needs.
This Bulletin is designed to help all relevant stakeholders gain a better understanding of the difficult situation of persons with disabilities, and to consider developing programs and laws to enhance the quality of life of persons with disabilities and facilitate their social integration.
