Handicap International experience in Afghanistan - CBM

The lowest level of access is observed for girls who became disabled before school-starting age, living in ruralareas: 10.7% of these have access to school, as compared with an average of 17% for non-disabled girlsliving in similar settings. This needs to be compared to almost 40% for non-disabled urban girls. Althoughthe numbers above show better access for girls, both disabled and non-disabled, in urban areas, the rate of26.1% for access of girls disabled before age 7 is worrying, since this shows that girls are still excluded to alarge extent from enrolment efforts.Differences in access to school can be further understood by taking into account regional differences. Asalready stated, the main urban centres are providing easier access to schools for children than in the past,especially for boys. However, it can be assumed from this research that very remote areas are still laggingbehind with regard to providing schools.Figure 23: Access to Education According to Age of Disability, Gender andMajor Geographical AreasThe lowest levelof access isobserved for girlswho becamedisabled beforeschool-startingage, living inrural areas706050• Females Disabled before age 7• Females Disabled after age 7 and Non-Disabled• Males Disabled before age 7• Males Disabled after age 7 and Non-Disabled403020100Western Region North Western Region Central Region North Eastern Region Southern Region Eastern RegionFigure 23 shows above the rates of access to school by regional areas for all people aged above 7 years old.These figures show that males have better access to education in all regional areas. Children with disabilityhave less access than non-disabled: Southern and Eastern areas are the worst for disabled boys as well asgirls. The figures are better in Western and North-Western areas.However, if we look more closely at the figures in Table 6, it is the provinces where the main regional centresare situated, where access to schools is better.Table 6: Access to Education According to Age Groups, Age of Disability andUrban Regional Centres Compared to the Rest of the CountryAge of Disability Urban Centres 28 Rest of the CountryPersons Disabled before age 7 (all age groups) 40.6% 26.2%Persons Disabled after age 7 and Non-Disabled (all agegroups)Children between ages 7 and 14 who were Disabledbefore age 7Children between ages 7 and 14 who were Disabledafter age 7 and Non-Disabled62.2% 35.5%41.2% 34.7%83.1% 60.6%28The urban regional centres are : Kabul, Jalalabad, Kunduz City, Kandahar City, Herat City and Mazar-i-Sharif.Towards Inclusion and Equality in Education35