“United Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) highlights the rights to education for children with disabilities worldwide and Nepal has ratified it. But when it comes to inclusive education for such children, we hardly see any implementation of the same,” shared Dev Datta Joshi, a Disability Advocate.

During the lecture program jointly organized by ENGAGE and Nepal International Educational Consultancy (NIEC) at NIEC’s office in Kupondole on Friday, Joshi emphasized that children with disabilities should be provided with education alongside other children in regular schools so that they also get quality education like the rest. 

“If children with disabilities are segregated and sent to special schools, they’ll develop an inferior feeling. In order to make them equally competitive, inclusive education system should be promoted,” he added. Joshi also highlighted that inclusive education ensures bright future and equal career opportunities for disabled children.

A skype conversation with Dr Thomas Bernhard, an expert on disability from Germany, was also held during the program. He shared that even in a developed country like Germany, where resources have been allocated for inclusive education, special education approach still persists.

He also pointed out that various challenges arise in such education system. Teaching other children and children with certain disabilities in the same classroom is a difficult task, he said, “However, if teachers are trained on the same and are dedicated to do so, it is definitely not impossible,” he said.After the lecture was over, one of the participants, Bikram Rajkarnikar, an ENGAGE Corp, shared, “I’ve learnt that creating awareness among children with disabilities about their rights to education in regular schools is a must. That way, they’ll be able to raise a voice and get social benefits that other individuals of their age enjoy on a daily basis.” He also opined that this issue should be brought into limelight so that more people support the cause.

“If awareness about the importance of such inclusive education system is created, the concerned authorities will be pressurized to come up with rules and regulations supporting the cause,” concluded Simone Galimberti, Co-Founder of ENGAGE.