Children with disabilities should be considered in policymaking – UNICEF

The United Nations Children’s Fund has called on governments to consider children with disabilities while making policies.

UNICEF made the call on Wednesday in its report titled, ‘Nearly 240 million children with disabilities around the world, UNICEF’s most comprehensive statistical analysis finds.’

The report revealed that one in 10 children with disabilities worldwide are being deprived of education, health care, and other social benefits.

As a result, UNICEF has called on government bodies to ensure that children with disabilities are consulted and considered in decision-making processes.

Its recent report is aimed at increasing “the inclusion of the one in 10 children and young people with disabilities worldwide by ensuring they are counted, consulted and considered in decision-making.”

According to UNICEF, all children, including those with disabilities, should have a say in the issues that affect their lives.

Executive Director of the agency, Henrietta Fore, stated that children with disabilities face multiple challenges in realising their rights.

“This new research confirms what we already knew: children with disabilities face multiple and often compounding challenges in realising their rights,” Fore said.

She added, “From access to education, to being read to at home; children with disabilities are less likely to be included or heard on almost every measure. All too often, children with disabilities are simply being left behind.”