RESOURCE: Global Partnership for Disability and Development Launches New Website
Regular readers who look closely may have noticed that one source I often credit for the information I share is the email distribution list for the Global Partnership for Disability and Development (GPDD).
If you didn’t know, the GPDD works to promote the inclusion of people with disabilities and their families in development policies and practices. They do this by facilitating collaboration among development agencies and organizations to reduce poverty among children, women, and men with disabilities living in poor countries.
One of its sponsors is the World Bank, which is why the GPDD used to have its electronic home at http://www.worldbank.org/disability/gpdd. But the GPDD now has a new website all to itself.
You can find updated information on GPDD’s work, background, and membership, as well as relevant news and events at:
http://www.GPDD-online.org.
And what about their mailing list? I’ll let GPDD describe its purpose: “The Global Partnership for Disability and Development (GPDD) mailing list facilitates interaction between stakeholders to advance the social, economic, and civic empowerment of people with disabilities, and the mainstreaming of disability issues in development.” If you have made a habit of examining my source credits at the bottom of each post, then you will have noticed that GPDD is a common avenue for distributing conference and job post announcements related to disability and international development, as well as announcements about new resources and publications.
But the people who participate on the list do sometimes exchange information that doesn’t necessarily make it to this blog site. (The same goes for any of the other sources I cite.) People also use the GPDD list for networking among people who share similar goals in reducing poverty among people with disabilities and sometimes turn to each other for advice and guidance on finding the information they need. If you think you’d like to subscribe to the GPDD mailing list directly, you can do that for free. You don’t have to become an official member of GPDD to join. More details at http://gpdd-online.org/mailinglist/
Or, if you think you might want your organization or agency to become a GPDD member, then read the GPDD membership page to decide if you are eligible. You can also check their list of links to see what organizations are already members.
Please send any feedback, comments, or concerns regarding the GPDD website to Kelly Hamel at kmhamel@law.syr.edu.
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Are Development Programs Achieving Disability Inclusion? If Not, What Next?
We cannot put all the world’s children into school, or eradicate global poverty and hunger, or stop the spread of HIV/AIDS, until and unless mainstream international development programs proactively include people with disabilities. The good news is that a slowly growing number of international agencies and organizations have written policies declaring their support for disability inclusion, otherwise known as disability mainstreaming. These include, as a few examples, the US Agency of International Development (USAID); the World Bank; The Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD); and the UK Department for International Development (DFID).
But, how well do these nice-sounding policies translate into practice? Do these programs actually reach poor people with disabilities in developing countries, or improve the quality of their lives, any better than before they wrote these policies? One DisabilityKar publication explores this question: Has Disability Been Mainstreamed into Development Cooperation? (Word format, 921 Kb)
One of the conclusions of this report is that the question is harder to answer than you might think: even the definition of what makes a “policy” a “policy” is apparently not always as obvious as it might seem. Then there are even trickier concepts to define, such as “inclusion,” “mainstreaming,” and “disability.” But ultimately the answer is mostly disappointing. Apart from some limited progress, many policies fail to go beyond pretty words on a page into pragmatic action in the field. If they are implemented, it is more or less haphazardly.
This conclusion in itself will probably not be especially new to close observers of the development field. What makes this study interesting, however, is that it is one of the few attempts to formally document what it terms a “disconnect between promise and results.” More importantly, it makes an attempt to answer why this disconnect happens, and what committed organizations can do to ensure that disability-friendly policies are carried out in practice. The study was published in July 2005, so some information has changed since then. But many of the underlying challenges are likely still similar today. Organizations and agencies that are serious about disability inclusion may wish to review this study with their own policies and practices in mind and consider ways they can help close the gap.
Has Disability Been Mainstreamed into Development Cooperation? (Word format, 921 Kb) analyzes policies and practice at USAID, the World Bank, NORAD, and DFID. The most common reason why disability inclusion policies fail include: lack of institutional support; failure to communicate policies; failure to break down traditional attitudes toward disability; failure to provide practical guidance in how to implement the policies; and inadequate resources.
Download the full 107-page report in Word format (921 Kb) at:
People interested in the DisabilityKar report may also be interested in reading a study of US-based organizations with an international focus on the extent to which they proactively include the concerns of women and girls with disabilities in their programs. This study, entitled Gender And Disability: A Survey of InterAction Member Agencies: Findings And Recommendations on Inclusion of Women and Men with Disabilities in International Development Programs (PDF format, 286 Kb), explores both policies and practice in dozens of relief and international development agencies and organizations. It also includes recommendations for how mainstream organizations can move forward in promoting genuine disability inclusion. Published by Mobility International USA, it is a few years older than DisabilityKar’s study, but covers more organizations and includes a gender focus as well as a disability focus. It can be downloaded in PDF format (286 Kb) at:
http://www.miusa.org/publications/freeresources/media/genderdisabilityreport.PDF
I discovered DisabilityKar’s study by exploring Handicap International’s new, on-line, free CD on Disability Rights and Policies. I encourage readers to explore the on-line CD on their own to find more publications and resources of interest. I first learned of MIUSA’s publication when I took my first course in international development and disability a few years ago at Gallaudet University.
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JOB POST: Assistant Coordinator, Bangladesh, National Forum of Organizations Working with the Disabled (NFOWD)
Career Opportunity
Application deadline: August 5, 2008
The National Forum of Organizations Working with the Disabled (NFOWD) is the apex federating body of NGOs working in the field of disability in Bangladesh. Established in 1991, it is registered with the Department of Social Services under the Ministry of Social Welfare and with the NGO Affairs Bureau. At the national level, it is a member of the National Coordination Committee and the National Executive Committee on Disability (formed under the Disability Welfare Act 2001) and the National Social Welfare Council and the National Foundation for Development of the Disabled Persons. With current membership strength of over 200 organizations, it has earned the recognition & reputation as the only interface between the Government and NGOs in the field of Disability, for its role in coordination and policy advocacy to uphold the rights & privileges of persons with disabilities in this country.
In order to strengthen its secretariat, NFOWD is looking to fill in the following position with immediate appointment:
Assistant Coordinator:
This is a mid-level position reporting to the Program Coordinator. Major responsibilities will include:
(a) Overseeing project related activities,
(b) Preparation of analytical reports on national and international policies, strategies, events and programs relating to Disability, and to suggest policy options for NFOWD.
(c) Developing necessary documents and materials for publication and/or circulation/distribution, such as annual reports, newsletters, articles, advocacy campaigns etc.
(d) Preparing workshop/ meeting reports/minutes and assisting the Director on matters arising out of the meeting decisions.
(e) Disseminating information on special events or any other related documents to member organizations.
(f) Responding to the requirements of GOB and other agencies concerned with the interests of NFOWD.
The position calls for extensive independent travel across the country. Salary is negotiable.
The ideal candidate will be a dynamic team person, willing & capable to travel frequently & independently. Strong interpersonal & communication skills both in Bangla & English, and computer skills both in Bangla and in English, along with at least three years’ hands on experience are essential. Working experience in any Disability program is desirable. Women will be encouraged. People with disabilities are also strongly encouraged to apply.
If you fulfill the abovementioned criteria, and feel that you are the person to take up the challenge, please send your curriculum vitae to NFOWD at the address mentioned below positively by Tuesday, the 5th of August 2008 either by post or e-mail. (To reiteriate: please do NOT contact We Can Do. Instead, please use the contact information provided below to reach NFOWD directly.)
Contact will be established with only short-listed applicants for further recruitment process. Any sort of persuasion in this regard, either in person, by mail or phone, will automatically disqualify the candidate.
The Secretary General
National Forum of Organizations Working with the Disabled (NFOWD)
8/9 Block – A, Lalmatia
Dhaka – 1207
Bangladesh
E-mail: nfowd@bdmail.net
We Can Do received this announcement via the Disability Information Dissemination Network, which is managed by the Centre for Services and Information on Disability (CSID) in Bangladesh and sponsored by Handicap International. To join the CSID mailing list (email discussion group), people may send an email to csid@bdmail.net and to csid@bdonline.com with the word “join” in the subject line.
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Information Wanted: Africans with Disabilities, Policies, Programs, Organizations
Posted on 23 November 2008. Filed under: Announcements, Call for Comments or Information, Cross-Disability, Human Rights, Middle East and North Africa, Opportunities, Policy & Legislation, Resources, Sub-Saharan Africa Region | Tags: Africa, African Decade of Persons with Disabilities, africans with disabilities, best practice, contact information, disability inclusion, disability rights, disabled africans, disabled people, DPOs, Human Rights, information, organizations, people with disabilities, persons with disabilities, policies, Poverty, programs, Secretariat of the African Decade of Persons with Disab, situation of people with disabilities |
**The Secretariat of the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities needs your Help**
The Secretariat is currently collecting and updating information on the situation faced by persons with disabilities in the 54 African countries. It will enter this information into the country folders on its website. The information collected relates to policies, programmes, contact details for organisations engaged in disability work, best practice in the inclusion of disability in mainstream programmes, etc. If you have such information to share, please write to info@africandecade.co.za.
We Can Do readers will want to explore the excellent web site for the Secretariat of the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities. As implied in the above paragraph, their web site has a section with information on the 54 individual countries of Africa. Your assistance can help them expand the information provided in these folders. Providing information to the Secretariat of the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities can also be an opportunity for you to help bring attention to policies, programs, organizations, and practices that have benefited people with disabilities in your country. Again, you can email relevant details to info@africandecade.co.za
It is also well worth exploring their collection of training materials for organizations of people with disabilities. Some of their training materials have been highlighted in past We Can Do posts, but not all of them. Training materials include a guidebook for journalists; material on lobbying and advocacy; resource mobilization and fund raising; evaluation; capacity building; and more.
The first paragraph of the above text is copy/pasted from a recent issue of the email newsletter for Disabled People’s International.
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[Published at wecando.wordpress.com (We Can Do)]
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