DFID and Disability: A Mapping of the Department for International Development and Disability Issues

Abstract

[Excerpt] Disability, until very recently, has been largely invisible in the development process. In 2000, DFID broke new ground when it was the first major development agency to publish a paper on the links between poverty and disability. The Issues paper, ‘Disability, Poverty and Development’ was not a statement of policy; it advocated a twin track approach of mainstreaming disability issues combined with specific initiatives to address the particular needs of disabled people. The paper has gained widespread international recognition and raised expectations that DFID was about to take a lead on the issue. However, internally, the Issues paper is not so well known. This report reveals that DFID’s disability-focused activities have been largely hidden, and that more has been achieved than has been recognised.