Educational approaches to tackling disability in war-torn countries

Children displaced by conflict attend workshop on explosive remnants of war in a hostel in Benghazi, Libya. (Photo credit: UNICEF/Marta Ramoneda)

By Elisha Yoon
MediaGlobal

21 July 2011 [MediaGlobal]: More than one billion people live with some form of disability, including 93 to 150 million children, according to a recent report released by the World Health Organization and the World Bank.

These numbers are expected to increase, especially in countries where patterns of disability are influenced by health and environmental factors, as well as conflict. This is evident in Libya, a country whose civilian population is beset by more than five months of civil war.

A person is killed or maimed by mines and unexploded devices every two hours, and children represent a third of the victims, according to the Libya situation report by Handicap International.

Children are most vulnerable in sites heavily contaminated by remnants of war, where destroyed armored personnel carriers, tanks, and other unexploded ordnance pose a high risk of mine injuries, said David Haines, the Chief of Mission in Libya for Handicap International.

The colorful construction and intriguing designs of mortals, cluster-munitions, and other weapons hold a fatal attraction for children who often mistake them for toys, Haines told MediaGlobal. “Only two and a half weeks ago in Ajdabiya a child took one of these items home, and unfortunately the father decided to have a look at it and it exploded.”

Concerns about the devastating impact of conflict on children are prompting international and local communities to battle the rising rates of disability through education. Local teachers and NGO volunteers educate children about the debilitating and often permanent consequences of handling weapons, which serves as a vital tool to prevent disabilities in the embattled grounds of Libya.

In one of the lessons employed, for example, children are blind folded for five minutes, which at first could be exciting for them, said Haines. “But once [children] hear from a victim who has been blinded now for over 20 years, their testimony actually provides an impact and shows the children how bad it can be.”

With support from the Ministry of Education, Handicap International also develops structural programs and helps to integrate mine-risk education into the school curriculum,
said Haines.

In Cambodia, another country still dealing with the vestiges of war, awareness of the plight of disabled children is on the rise. Countless unexploded ordnance and landmines still threaten Cambodians; since 1979, more than 60,000 mine-related injuries and deaths have occurred.

While mine-awareness education and rehabilitation programs continue in efforts to help the fragile country rise from its violent past, relative stability over the last decade has facilitated growth of educational programs for disabled children. In 2009, the Ministry of Education adopted a three-year pilot project to increase disabled children’s access to mainstream schools.

Along with support from authorities of education, community partners are invaluable in implementing projects at the local level, said Celine Abric, the operation coordinator for Handicap International Federation who spoke for the Inclusive Education Team in Cambodia.

Under the inclusive education program, itinerant teachers travel between local and mainstream schools providing support. Facilitating transportation provides a way for disabled children, who often cannot travel long distances to mainstream schools, overcome physical limitations, Abric told MediaGlobal.

While efforts to eliminate physical limitations have increased access, another essential aspect of inclusive education involves removing attitude barriers.

Through a recent project in Sung I village, a girl without arms and legs attended a mainstream primary school with the support of her teachers and classmates. “She has a physical impairment but her brain is not affected and she is more intelligent than me,” said one classmate, in an HIF team account of the project.

The inclusive education programs implemented in Cambodia are proving to be a viable channel through which disabled children, often marginalized to the fringes of society, can empower their lives.

In societies that otherwise do not prioritize the needs of the disabled, children with disabilities are less likely to receive education, thus experiencing limited employment opportunities and barriers to other areas of social activity, according to the WHO report.