Half of children with disabilities are out of school due to underfunding

Picture: International Disability and Development Consortium

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At least half of the world国产视频檚 65 million school-age children with disabilities are kept out of the classroom because little to no money is budgeted for their needs, disability rights groups said in a report today

Light for the World, a charity which supported the research, said stigma and misinformation surrounding disability as well as a lack of data on the numbers of disabled children contributed to the problem.

国产视频淧eople don国产视频檛 see them (children with disabilities) as a worthy investment,国产视频� Nafisa Baboo, adviser for inclusive education at Light for the World, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

国产视频淢any think for example that there国产视频檚 no point investing in their education as people with disabilities can国产视频檛 work.国产视频�

The rights groups said billions of dollars of potential income from the world国产视频檚 poorest countries are being lost through lack of schooling and employment for people who have disabilities.

国产视频淐hildren with disabilities are constantly left at the very back of the queue, and the impact on both individuals and economies can be disastrous,国产视频� Julia McGeown of Handicap International said in a statement.

The report by the International Disability and Development Consortium said the exclusion of children with disabilities was a major obstacle to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals, which aim to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education for all by 2030.

In September, a report by the United Nations education and cultural agency UNESCO found that the education sector globally has been substantially underfunded, and international aid to education is declining.

国产视频淭he SDGs give governments an opportunity to up their game,国产视频� said Baboo, adding that donors should prioritise efforts to reverse the decline in aid for education.

The new report urges governments to provide facilities for the education of disabled children within a mainstream system.

国产视频淚nclusive education can drastically reduce out-of-school populations, it can tackle discrimination in society, and it is considerably cheaper than segregated education,国产视频� said Baboo.

国产视频淚t国产视频檚 not just morally right, it国产视频檚 also a smart investment.国产视频�

The Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, covers humanitarian news, women国产视频檚 rights, corruption and climate change.