Children with special needs are in particularly dire straits. They face the twin challenges of poverty and disability given the nature of their impairments. Children with special needs are less likely to attend school than their healthy peers. It is estimated that one-third of all children not enrolled in school have a disability. Disability and impairment have a stronger impact on school attendance than gender.
Children with disability who are thus deprived of education are more likely to live in poverty as adults.
In Uganda many children with special needs are hidden away by their parents/guardians due to fear of ridicule from society. Some are abandoned by their parents and left in the care of ailing grandparents who cannot provide adequate care or support.
According to the National Development Plan (NDP) 2010/11-2015/16, it is thought there are 1.22 million children with disabilities living in Uganda. Among all these children, only 5% attend regular schools in inclusive settings while another 10% have access to education in special schools. In Uganda, only 10% of children with disabilities who require rehabilitative health services get them.
SUTCHI supports the enrollment of children with special needs into school and ensures that they stay in school for proper education. We provide school fees and other scholastic materials to children with special needs. We believe that if we empower poor children with disability, we will help them become more resourceful adults.
Many schools in Uganda are not equipped to support children with special needs. Absence of special needs teachers, classrooms without access ramps, and communal toilets that are too dirty for use by some children with physical impairments who just crawl. We encourage schools to provide an inclusive learning environment for children with special needs through advocacy.
SUTCHI also supports the medical rehabilitation of children with special needs. For many of these children surgery and rehabilitation in form of physical therapy and other therapies can significantly reduce the disability. We facilitate children in rehabilitation centers and provide transport to and from these centers.