Of the 600 million people worldwide with disabilities, 70 percent live in developing countries. In some countries, up to 10 percent of the population has some form of disability. Disabilities may be caused by disease, malnutrition, inappropriate or inadequate treatment, war, physical and mental violence, and workplace or road traffic accidents. Increasingly, age-related illnesses also play a part.

In the battle against poverty and the effort to achieve the UN Millennium Development Goals, it is fundamentally important to mobilise the social and economic potential of people with disabilities. But according to the World Development Report 2006, in developing countries more than elsewhere, people with disabilities suffer from higher rates of poverty, educational deprivation and unemployment than able-bodied people. Concepts are therefore needed which enable them to participate equally in social, political and working life.

The German Federal Government’s Program of Action 2015 to reduce poverty worldwide explicitly addresses people with disabilities when it refers to the inclusion of vulnerable groups in social protection systems and access to health and education services. In other sectors too, GIZ supports projects to improve the situation of people with disabilities on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

In addition to projects which directly target people with disabilities, GIZ carries out numerous measures around the world that also (though not exclusively) benefit people with disabilities. These include projects and programmes to prevent diseases, improve access to social services for poor sections of the population and to enhance the rights of underprivileged people.

More on these issues:

• Disability and development
  The policy paper shows the importance of taking into consideration the interests of persons with disabilities in connection with poverty reduction and achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. It presents the orientation of German Development Cooperation in this regard, offers a brief outline of activities to date, and provides impulses for further cooperation efforts in this sensitive area
  de-behinderung-und-entwicklung.pdf, 0.34 MB (German)
  en-disability-and-development.pdf, 0.23 MB (English)
• Infrastructure and disabilities (GIZ/STAKES) / Integrating Appropriate Measures for People with Disabilities in the Infrastructure Sector
  The study provides planners of infrastructure projects with concrete guidance on integrating affordable measures and special provisions into the built environment for the inclusion of people with physical disabilities. R. Wiman (STAKES) & Jim Sandhu (INDRA), Eschborn 2004
  en-disability-infrastructure-2004.pdf, 1.04 MB (English)
• Support to special education - Ghana
  Flyer about a GIZ (former GTZ) project for the introduction of integration classes at mainstream schools in Ghana.
  en-special-education-Ghana.pdf, 1.06 MB (English)
• Development for all
  BEZ e.V., DBHW, ISL; Essen, November 2004
  People with disabilities are members of their communities and it is time they were afforded equitable participation in development projects. It is not just a question of human rights: serious achievement of international development goals will not be possible unless due regard is given to this group.
  de-entwicklung-fuer-alle.pdf, 1.88 MB (German)
• Transition from school to work
  A handbook for parents and teachers of mentally handicapped adolescents in Ghana (by Adrian Kniel).
  en-transition-handbook-gh.pdf, 3.10 MB (English)