When the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) was adopted in 2006, it included a commitment to a more inclusive education for people with disability. The promise was for all people with disability to be guaranteed the right to an inclusive education at all levels, regardless of age, without discrimination and on the basis of equal opportunity.

While there has been considerable progress in the eight years since the CRPD was adopted, not enough has been done to ensure an inclusive right for the education of children with disabilities. Most of the 150 million children with disabilities remain excluded from a quality education, and children with disabilities continue to be less likely to start school and less likely to complete primary school or move on to secondary school.

This is plainly unacceptable. We cannot continue leaving children with disabilities behind.

Inclusive policies are still lacking in many countries, and where they exist, gaps between policy and practice present enormous challenges. Children with disabilities face multiple barriers both in and outside of schools: negative attitudes, beliefs and ignorance concerning disability; a lack of clear policies; inaccessible physical facilities and transportation; inflexible curricula and exam systems; non-inclusive teaching methods and a lack of adequate didactic materials. 

On this International Day of Persons with Disabilities, the Global Partnership for Education reaffirms its commitment to protect and uphold all children and young people’s right to an inclusive quality education, and calls on all governments, donors, international organizations, civil society organizations, the private sector, foundations, teachers and students to take action to:

• End the invisibility and exclusion of children and young people with disabilities from education by improving data and evidence. All countries must collect disaggregated data on children with disabilities
• Make education and learning accessible and relevant for all. This includes making schools accessible to children with disabilities; providing appropriate curricula, learning materials and assessments; training teachers and sensitizing communities.
• Work in partnership at a local, national and international level to champion inclusive education for all children and young people now and post-2015 by promoting inclusive education at all levels, including early childhood education. We must all ensure that inclusive education strategies and action plans are part of local education sector plans.

We cannot continue leaving children with disabilities behind. Let us commit to making these children a priority by ensuring that inclusion is at the basis of all education planning.