Commit to put more disabled children in school

In August 2018, the Ministry of Education raised the alarm over 852,000 children aged between six and seven who were then out of school. A third of that number, about 300,000 children, it was indicated, were children with disabilities. As another school term begins, it is critical to question what the status is so far. Is there improvement? Do we have more children with disabilities in school now? And if not, what are the barriers that should be addressed?

During the first ever Global Disability Summit, Kenya committed to create and implement inclusive education sector policy and plans and to expand teacher capacity building and training on Inclusive Education. How is the progress on these commitments and going forward, are these commitments going to ensure more learners with disabilities acquire quality education?

Education has been said to be the greatest equaliser of our societies. For many people, it is the door through which poverty is overcome. However, for most children with disabilities, missing a chance at getting an education is more the norm than the exception.

In 2018, a National Survey on Children with Disabilities and Special Needs in Education revealed that the education system in Kenya is still ill-equipped to support learners with disabilities and special needs. Additionally, a collaborative research titled Bridging the “Gap — Examining Disability and Development in Four African Countries” showed that in Kenya, 30 per cent of surveyed disabled children in urban areas did not attend school, compared to 5 per cent of non-disabled children.

A lack of quality education eventually results in negative outcomes for persons with disabilities in future, especially in the realm of livelihoods. Kenya is party to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and by this, Kenya is obligated to combat discrimination in its entirety. We must question ourselves why it is that such a huge number of children with disabilities is out of school. Does it have to do with negative perceptions and stereotypes that children with disabilities are uneducable? Does it have to do with the fact that we are not investing in inclusive education by ensuring that all our schools can be accessed by children with or without disabilities? Which means we have to invest in the curriculum and invest in training of teachers, among other investments, to ensure inclusive education.

It is unacceptable that we allow the status quo to remain for children with disabilities. The statistics show the consequences of this. Because often-times there is a clear linkage between education and employment.

In their 2016 report on the status of equality and inclusion in Kenya, the National Gender and Equality Commission showed that the employment to population ratio for persons with disabilities was about 35 per cent, which is relatively lower than that of the overall population, which was 57 per cent, showing that persons with disabilities were disadvantaged relative to the rest of the population with respect to accessing employment opportunities.

In the Agenda 2030 and looking at Goal 10 of the Sustainable Development Goals, the commitment is to reduce inequality; and indeed, this can only happen if we ensure equal opportunities for all in all spheres of life, but importantly in education.

Exclusion of people with disabilities generates economic costs to individuals, their families and societies at large. It goes without saying, therefore, that to realise Kenya’s obligations to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities of promoting equality as well as implementing the Sustainable Development Goals in ensuring reduced inequalities, Kenya must allocate budgets to support inclusion of learners with disabilities in order to ensure reduced inequalities and to enable persons with disabilities to contribute to economic growth.