UNAPD is committed to ensure that Children with Disabilities (CWDs) access education at all levels as enshrined in UNCRPD, Article 24 which states that “State Parties shall ensure an inclusive education system at all levels and lifelong learning” and SDG #4 “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”.
In line with the above, UNAPD in collaboration with other stakeholders will promote inclusive designs/ accessibility provisions in construction works with special focus on schools in the project districts, introduce child to child approach in selected project schools to promote child support at school, initiate- teachers-learners-parents termly learning and sharing sessions, introduce Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) approach to strengthen family livelihoods, advocate for inclusion of disability sports in primary schools Physical Education (PE) and co-curricular activities in order to improve physical literacy ( the ability, confidence and desire to be physically active for life), strengthen the national steering committee on Menstrual Hygiene Management(MHM), complete MHM policy and work with stakeholders to operationalize the policy in schools, build capacity of the senior women teachers to train Girls With Disabilities (GWDs) in MHM issues, advocate for co-funding of Menstrual Hygiene Management(MHM) in schools by education ministry, conduct refresher trainings on making of low cost sanitary pads, ensure that Government of Uganda commits funds to the Special Needs and Inclusive Education policy, advocate for increased subvention grant in order to benefit more learners with disabilities, Monitor the subvention grants to ensure effective benefits to learners with disabilities, collect data on the level of enrollment and retention of CWDs in schools, conduct debates in schools to promote learning and rights of CWDs, conduct accessibility auditing in new schools for reasonable accommodation, build capacity of journalists on disability and inclusion issues, conduct TV/Radio awareness raising campaigns on inclusive education, documentation of success stories, lessons learnt for publication on social media and newspapers, conduct a budget cost analysis of constructing an accessible facility and a non-accessible one to be used as an advocacy tool for inclusive designs, work with Uganda Society of Architects to conduct Continuous Professional Development Seminars(CPDS) sessions for practising architects/students on inclusive building plans, work with stakeholders to expedite the process of completing the regulations in order to commence the Building Control Act (BCA-2013) and also work with Education Standards Agency to develop a disability sensitive national schools inspector’s check list.
The specific goal of the project is “People with Physical Disabilities (PWPDs) are enjoying equal rights in all aspects of life and are mainstreamed in national and local level development programs”.
The outcomes of the project activities will be;
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increased awareness on child rights and inclusive education,
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increased enrollment and retention of CWDs in schools,
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inclusion of disability sports in primary schools PE and co-curricular activities,
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co-funding of MHM in schools by education ministry, improved MHM among girl with disabilities in schools,
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MHM policy in place and being implemented,
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increased subvention grant for CWDs in schools,
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Draft national schools inspector’s check list in place,
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active national steering committee on MHM,
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improved accessibility/reasonable accommodation in schools ,
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BCA 2013 regulations completed and Act commenced,
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Allocation of funds to the Special Needs and Inclusive Education policy by Government of Uganda and improved livelihoods in households of CWDs.
Goal of the Project: The long term goal of the project is People with Physical Disabilities (PWPDs) enjoying equal rights in all aspects of life and are mainstreamed in national and local level development programs.
The short-term outcomes within the grant period are:-
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Improved enrolment, retention and learning environment for CWDs
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Empowered parents supporting their children with disabilities to access education
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Strengthened collaboration with partners for strategic advocacy and policy/legislative reforms towards inclusive education