United Nations International Children’s’ Emergency Fund (UNICEF)

Hofstra University Model United Nations Conference

United Nations International Children’s’ Emergency Fund (UNICEF)

______________________________________________________________________

Rebecca Gleeson

Chairperson

1 Dear Delegates, It is a great pleasure to welcome you to Hofstra’s 2017 Model United Nations Conference. My name is Rebecca Gleeson and I will be your Chair for the UNICEF Committee. I am from Plainview, NY and I am a junior here at Hofstra University. I double major in Early Childhood/Childhood Education and History.

In high school, I was involved in one of the largest Model UN clubs in Long Island. I travelled to numerous conferences in Long Island and have won two honorable mention awards as a delegate.

I chaired the UNICEF committee during my senior year of high school and I take great pride in the fact that my committee received the award for Best Committee during this conference. This committee is especially important to me as an Education major.

Attending a conference as a delegate at the actual United Nations in New York City through Global Classrooms Initiative was one of the most incredible experiences I had in Model UN in high school. I met many people from other countries who attended this conference. One of the significant reasons that I chose to attend Hofstra University was the fact that it has a Model UN club. I enjoyed meeting all the members of this club at Hofstra and today I enjoy serving as Secretary of the club.

It was a remarkable experience to attend the University of Pennsylvania’s Model UN Conference in Philadelphia during my freshman, sophomore and junior years. I was able to meet so many people from other colleges and universities and learn more about Model UN at the college level. I also had the opportunity to teach 5th and 6th graders about public speaking during my freshman year of college, which was particularly exciting for me as an Education major. Additionally, I was an assistant to a Chair during my first year at Hofstra University and this inspired me to want to serve as a Chair during my sophomore year as well as this year.

I chose the topics of Childhood Malnutrition and Access to Education for Students with Disabilities for the UNICEF Committee because I believe that these are very prevalent global issues. It’s important to make sure that children in all countries are able to have access to proper nutrition. It is also important to recognize that not every country allows students with disabilities access to education. This topic is very important to me because I plan on becoming a Special Education teacher.

I hope you all learn more about current global issues during this conference. This conference will also help you learn public speaking skills, as well as how to resolve conflicts with others. Mainly, I want you to enjoy being a part of Model UN as much as I do and I hope you will all continue participating while in college if you can. There are numerous skills you can learn in this club that can help you throughout your lifetime. Let’s try to make this the best conference Hofstra has ever seen!

Sincerely, Your Chair, Rebecca Gleeson

2 Introduction to the Committee The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) is a humanitarian and development agency that works towards defending rights for every child around the globe.

These rights include having safe shelter, protection, nutrition, prenatal care, clean water, health care and sanitation.1 UNICEF is run differently than other committees. However, during this conference, it will be run as a General Assembly committee. UNICEF has offices in many countries that carry out the organization’s mission in each area, while working with the country’s government. UNICEF has five year programs that focus on the rights of women and children.

Needs are analyzed at the beginning of each program cycle. Regional offices support the work and provide assistance to country offices.2 Overall, the management and administration of UNICEF takes place at the headquarters. In addition, UNICEF has a governing body known as its Executive Board. The Executive Board provides intergovernmental support and organizational oversight.3 UNICEF has worked for nearly seventy years at improving the lives of children and families. To do this, UNICEF needs to have a global presence to create results and monitor their effects. In addition, UNICEF collaborates with leaders, thinkers and policy makers to help all children be aware of their rights, especially those who are disadvantaged.

Lately, UNICEF’s priorities have been child survival and development, basic education and gender equality, HIV/AIDS and children, child protection and policy advocacy and partnerships. UNICEF is the leading advocate for children’s rights, and works in more than 190 countries. UNICEF also works in territories and areas through programs and committees.4

3 Introduction to the Topics UNICEF has stated that almost half of all deaths in children around the world, under the age of five, are caused by undernutrition. This translates into the tragic loss of about 3 million children a year. Not having proper nutrition can put children at a greater risk of dying from common infections. Malnutrition can also increase the severity and frequency of the infection as well as cause delayed recovery. The interaction between malnutrition and infection can create a potentially fatal cycle of a worsening illness and nutritional status. In the first 1,000 days in a child’s life, poor nutrition could lead to irreversible stunted growth. This stunted growth can impair cognitive ability and reduce performance in school and work. UNICEF needs to look for ways to make people in countries more aware of nutrition guidelines and make sure everyone has access to proper nutrition.5 Dealing with the issue of childhood malnutrition can have positive effects for a country, such as gaining a healthier population.

Children with disabilities face many forms of discrimination, which causes them to be excluded from society and school. The attitudes people have towards students with disabilities and the few resources to accommodate them cause the challenges they face in accessing education.

There is also a concern about the education system’s inability to ensure quality education for children with disabilities. The Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Education for All framework strive to meet the learning needs of all children and youth. This includes students with disabilities. UNICEF needs to look for ways that students with disabilities can be included in the classroom, as well as ways to prepare teachers to work with students with disabilities.6 Improving the education for students with disabilities would improve the overall education available around the world.

4 Topic 1: Childhood Malnutrition

Everyone feels hungry at certain points. Hunger is a signal that the body needs food. Once this need is satisfied, the hunger signal goes away. Malnutrition is very different from this in that people who are chronically malnourished lack the nutrients for proper development and health.

Children who suffer from malnutrition have less of a resistance to infection. Thus, children who are malnourished are more likely to get sick and in severe cases, die.7 High levels of malnutrition in children are occurring in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Progress can be made when the provision of basic services comes together with support for initiatives that inform families and communities.8 This will help ensure that children are getting the recommended nutrient intake and infectious diseases are being prevented. UNICEF looks to create a multi-sectoral nutrition program that results in evidence-based and sustainable nutrition actions delivered on a large scale.9 UNICEF has stated that nutritional status is in direct correlation with food, health and care.

These factors are directly related to a country’s economic and political stability. Nutrition is often seen as an important indicator of the need to improve economic welfare in a country.

Socioeconomic changes in a country is a parallel to an accelerated transition in diet. An important economic crisis that could threaten communities is food price crises.10 The first 1,000 days of a child’s life are the most crucial time for meeting the child’s nutritional requirements because it is needed to support growth, development and protection from infections. Child undernutrition is evaluated by measuring the height and weight of a child. If this is inadequate, it is known as stunting and could be caused by acute malnutrition. Today, the focus is on reducing stunting and having more of an understanding of the importance of undernutrition. UNICEF now has more of an emphasis on policies for children younger than two years old, including maternal nutrition and feeding practices. It is important to have sufficient maternal nutrition to prevent child

5 undernutrition as pregnancy requires more nutrient and vitamin needs. Being undernourished as a child leads to a greater likelihood of giving birth to an undernourished or low weight child, thus continuing the cycle. In addition, low birthweight can be related to increased mortality. There are also inadequate breast feeding practices that could lead to undernutrition.11 There are many consequences of undernutrition. Undernutrition can cause many diseases such as blindness because of a vitamin A deficiency and neural tube defects due to a folic acid deficiency. There is also now more knowledge on the impact stunting has on undernutrition.

Research has revealed that an insufficient intake of the micronutrients, iodine, folic acid and iron, causes the reduction in school performance. Stunting also causes poor achievement in school performance. The timing of nutritional deficiencies is extremely important because it impacts the brain and nervous system development that begins very early in pregnancy and ends at the age of two. This knowledge has caused the UN to shift to being concerned about children under the age of five to children under the age of two. Unfortunately, improvements in nutrition after the age of two do not lead to better school performance. Weight gain under the age of two is crucial to this.

Rapid weight gain later in childhood could lead to diseases such as type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, and stroke.12 Malnutrition in children can be manifested in several ways. Stunting is chronic undernutrition occurring during the most crucial periods of growth and development. Sub-Saharan Africa holds forty percent of this population, while South Asia holds thirty-nine percent. The four countries with the highest prevalence are Timor-Leste, Burundi, Niger and Madagascar. However, the global presence of stunting in children under five years has declined from forty percent in the 1990s to twenty-six percent in 2011. The greatest declines have occurred in East Asia and the Pacific thanks to the large improvements by China. Countries in Latin America and the Caribbean

6 have also greatly reduced stunting. There are disparities, such as children in rural areas being more likely to be stunted.13 In 2011, nearly 101 million children were considered underweight, with most being in South Asia. The greatest reductions of underweight children have occurred in Central and Eastern Europe. While many countries make progress toward decreasing underweight prevalence, countries increase the rate of stunting. Wasting is defined as acute undernutrition. Children who suffer from wasting experience an increased risk of death. India has 25 million wasted children.

This is also common in sub-Saharan Africa. South Sudan, Sudan, Bangladesh and Chad. The children who live in these countries have cyclical food insecurity and frequent risk of infectious diseases.14 Children being underweight is also a prevalent issue, especially in poorer countries. In 2011, sixty-nine percent of underweight children resided in low and middle income countries. This has more than doubled since the 1990s and this has mostly been observed in the Middle East and North Africa. The World Health Organization is looking to reduce the risk of low birthweight by thirty percent before 2025. India holds one-third of the world’s underweight population. The occurrence of low birthweight is above twenty percent in Mauritania, Nauru, Pakistan, and the Philippines. There is also a lack of appropriate newborn care in that most children have not been weighed after birth.15 Nutrition-specific interventions directly impact the prevention and treatment of malnutrition. The key goals for nutrition programming are promoting ideal nutrition practices, having the micronutrient requirements and the treatment and prevention of severe acute malnutrition. Nutritional status before and during pregnancy is very important and requires the right amount of micronutrient intake. Interventions that improve maternal nutrient intake include

7 iron or folic acid supplements to reduce low birthweight. Protein supplements have been found to be effective. Many interventions are promoted through community-based programs. This could include preventing pregnancy during adolescence, as well as postponing the age of marriage.16 The way in which a child is breastfed has an impact on child malnutrition. Important practices involve breastfeeding within the first hour a child is born and for the first six months of a child’s life. These feeding practices could prevent one fifth of the deaths of children under the age of five years. This area does not receive sufficient attention. Initiating breastfeeding early decreases the risk of neonatal mortality. Breastfeeding is initiated early the least in South Asia more than any other region. Exclusively breastfeeding during the first six months of life can save lives, where infants are less likely to die from diarrhea or pneumonia. Eastern and Southern Africa, as well as South Asia have the highest rate of exclusive breastfeeding. There is a low rate in West and Central Africa. However, progress has been made in less-developed countries, where exclusive breastfeeding rates have risen by one third. Countries such as Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon still have low rates of exclusive breastfeeding, thus leading to high rates of stunting. It is imperative that these countries develop good feeding practices in order to reduce stunting. This poor quality of complementary food needs to be more emphasized. There needs to be more education on these practices and more countries need to be provided with certain foods in order for children to receive the right amount of micronutrients. A whopping sixty percent of children six to eight months receive soft foods, accounting for high deficiencies of micronutrients. The “minimum acceptable diet” is an indicator involving meal frequency and the diversity of diet. Urgent attention must be given to the “minimum acceptable diet.”17 Micronutrient deficiencies in low and middle income countries has become a major problem. There are deficiencies in folic acid, zinc, iodine, iron and vitamin A amongst women and

8 children. Programs to aid in these deficiencies can include delivering supplements to the vulnerable groups. The highest amount of vitamin A deficiency is occurring in Southeast Asia and Africa. Lack of vitamin A causes a greater risk of diseases due to a weaker immune system.

Countries in sub-Saharan Africa have managed to have a high coverage of vitamin A supplements.

Coverage is highest in East Asia and the Pacific. Iron deficiency can often lead to anemia. Anemia exceeds forty percent in almost all countries. The most widespread cause of mental impairment is iodine deficiency. The regions with the most amount of iodized salt include East Asia and the Pacific. The lowest are in sub-Saharan Africa. Micronutrient powders, which prevent anemia, have been known to be an acceptable way to improve the lack of complementary foods. Countries in the Caribbean, Latin America and Asia have been making use of these micronutrient powders. It is also important that these powders be added to staple foods.18 Children that have severe acute malnutrition are more likely to perish than well-nourished children. Prevention is the first action towards managing severe acute malnutrition and this is needed to minimize complications and avoid death. Community-based management has been successful in treating severe acute malnutrition and has been endorsed by the United Nations in 2007. Around 2 million children under the age of five were admitted for treatment. Key strategies to combat this epidemic include the creation of national policies to help governments strengthen systems. Governments also need to improve hygiene, water and sanitation to prevent the spread of diseases. Community-based programs are likely to solve these issues. Awareness of nutrition services also needs to be raised.19 Having policies and programs in education, agriculture, social protection and poverty reduction are imperative to make people aware of nutrition goals. More attention needs to be given to linking nutrition and agriculture. The world’s agricultural system is producing enough food to

9 feed the entire world, but access to this food is difficult. There needs to be more improved nutritional outcomes. Social protection includes policies and programs that protect against vulnerability. Safety net programs involving social protection are operating within more than a dozen countries.20 UNICEF is working with national governments at improving nutrition through the creation of an enabling environment that allows nutrition actions to be delivered at scale. The committee is also endorsing a comprehensive implementation plan. UNICEF mainly supports nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions based on evidence. The nutrition-specific interventions include infant and young child feeding, treatment and prevention of severe acute malnutrition, micronutrient supplementation and nutrition support for children with infectious diseases.

Nutrition programs need to be paired with information about the prevention of certain diseases.

UNICEF will also look to make sure countries have an adequate water supply and have public work programs that reduce undernutrition and hunger. Other important programs will include parent education programs to improve the home environment as well as supporting agriculture.

UNICEF is primarily focusing on the health of children under the age of two.21 UNICEF has many principles that guide nutrition programming. This includes a rightsbased approach that emphasizes the obligation of governments to control malnutrition. UNICEF also has an equity-based approach that allows vulnerable populations to access nutrition services and interventions. UNICEF plans to work across many sectors and disciplines to coordinate nutrition intervention. UNICEF has the ability to link national level work with global developments and policies. Globally, UNICEF works on wide-scale nutrition initiatives, while supporting national governments to strengthen nutrition policies. At the local level, UNICEF can promote community participation to establish more sustainable solutions and better nutrition

10 practices. UNICEF helps countries collect data on nutrition and advises how these countries can be helped. The organization can work with international and local NGOs and carry out joint mandates. UNICEF urges countries to make sound economic policies to support children suffering from malnutrition.22 Overall, UNICEF uses methods that have been proven to be effective.23

Bloc Positions Africa Ethiopia depends on rain-fed agriculture, causing the population to be at risk for drought and food insecurity. The country has reduced the mortality rate of children under five from 139 of 1,000 to 77 of 1,000. Stunting had existed in both poor and rich households. Ethiopia combined nutrition services into one strategy that involves direct nutrition interventions. This includes safety net programs, an emergency response system, improving infant feeding practices, micronutrient supplements, and free health services.

A decade ago, half of Rwanda’s population of children under age five were stunted.

Displacement often causes large groups of people to be more likely to catch diseases, as well as malnutrition.24 However, this decreased from fifty-two percent to forty-four percent. This success was accomplished through multi-sectoral approaches. Important elements of Rwanda’s approach include a strong resolve by the government and citizens to eliminate malnutrition, an emergency response involving lessons learned from past years, a community-centered approach for food security that promotes healthy nutrition practices, and a strong monitoring and evaluation system.25

11 North America When an earthquake struck Haiti, there was widespread devastation that made conditions even more challenging. Around 1.3 million households were food insecure. Around forty-one percent of children suffered from an illness. The government of Haiti and the international community created a multitude of services to aid the high rate of stunting in children. Haiti’s government created the National Action Plan for Recovery and Redevelopment. This program included food distribution and a work program that allowed people to transfer cash for foods. Haiti also implemented nutrition counseling in communities to improve infant feeding practices. In addition, Haiti provided micronutrient supplementation and worked to improve outreach within communities.26 Asia In India, more than 60 million children under the age of five were stunted. This population accounted for one third of the stunted children in the world. In 2012, the amount of children who were stunted dropped by twenty-three percent. India’s government was determined to focus on the improvement of the delivery of services. The government in the Indian state of Maharashtra created a statewide nutrition survey and is now tackling the stunting of children under the age of two. This includes delivering evidence-based interventions to help infants, while also addressing adolescent girls’ nutrition to improve the next generation. India is also focused on improving children’s birthweight and having more community-based interventions.

Nearly one quarter of Nepal’s people are living below the poverty line. However, the stunting prevalence in children dropped from fifty-seven percent in 2001 to forty-one percent in 2011. This was helped by economic growth and poverty reduction. Important nutrition and health

12 strategies were also a factor. The strategies included the delivery of interventions through community programing involving health volunteers and iron-folic acid supplementation for pregnant women.27 South America South American countries have made notable improvements in the nutrition and health of pregnant women and young children. Nutrition-sensitive interventions include the promotion of food security, clean water, sanitation and women’s empowerment. Bolivia’s program was able to reduce the mortality rate from severe malnutrition after implementing the World Health Organizations Ten Step Protocol advocating hospital care and community management. However, the Economic Commission for Latin America determined the cost of malnutrition in countries such as, Panama, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and the Dominican Republic to be $6,658 million.28 Peru created the Child Malnutrition Initiative in 2006, causing stunting to fall by a third. The stunting prevalence dropped from fifty-six percent in 2004 to forty-four percent in 2011. Before 2005, Peru focused on nutrition programs involving food assistance, but now Peru is taking a more multi-sectoral approach. Key elements include the creation of a coalition of international agencies and NGOs that support the commitment of reducing malnutrition. Peru has also capitalized the issue, causing it to move higher on the national agenda. The issue is under the direct control of the Prime Minister of Peru. These programs working in Peru helped create a national strategy that targets vulnerable groups. Financial management has increased operational efficiency.29

13 Guiding Questions 1) How does UNICEF inform more countries about the prevention and treatment of child malnutrition?

2) How would UNICEF provide the proper dietary needs to children to prevent child malnutrition?

3) How can UNICEF help governments strengthen their nutrition policies?

4) How can UNICEF be aided in the collection of data on malnutrition?

5) How can increased economic development in a country help lessen malnutrition?

6) How can UNICEF effectively work with UN member states to implement policies?

Additional Resources "Hunger and Malnutrition." KidsHealth - the Web's Most Visited Site about Children's Health. The Nemours Foundation, n.d. Web. http://kidshealth.org/en/parents/hunger.html "Improving Child Nutrition: The Achievable Imperative for Global Progress." UNICEF, Apr. 2013. Web. https://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Nutrition_Report_final_lo_res_8_April.pdf "UNICEF's Approach to Scaling Up Nutrition: For Mothers and Their Children." UNICEF, June 2015.

Web. http://wphna.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/2015-06-Scaling-Up-NutritionUNICEF.pdf

14 Topic 2: Access to Education for Students with Disabilities The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is leading a global movement called Education for All (EFA), which is the international commitment for every child and adult to receive high quality education. This is a basic human right and reflects the belief that education is very important to the well-being of an individual. UNESCO has created the EFA to collect information of the educational status of students with disabilities. But EFA has not given significant attention to marginalized groups of students, such as students with disabilities. EFA needs to use targeted measures to help overcome the obstacles EFA has faced in aiding children with disabilities.30 More focus by UNICEF has been placed on inclusion for students with disabilities.

Inclusion will not end the segregation of students with disabilities, but will create a commitment for schools to respect diversity and promote democratic principles related to equality and social justice. UNESCO describes inclusive education as: a process of addressing and responding to the diversity of needs of all learners through increasing participation in learning, cultures and communities, and reducing exclusion within and from education. It involves changes and modifications in content, approaches, structures and strategies, with a common vision which covers all children of the appropriate age range and a conviction that it is the responsibility of the state to educate all children.

UNICEF recognizes that inclusive education is very important to achieving quality education for all learners.31 Recognition of inclusion has strengthened in the past twenty-six years. During the 1990 World Conference on Education, it was first highlighted that many children with disabilities were excluded from school and more inclusive approaches need to be created. In 1993, the UN Standard

15 Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities required states to provide education in integrated settings to enable the education for students with disabilities. In 1994, 92 governments signed off on the provisions for inclusive education. Later in 1997, the Committee on the Rights of the Child suggested that: States should review and amend laws affecting disabled children which are not compatible with the principles and provisions of the CRC (Convention on the Rights of the Child), for example, legislation which compulsorily segregates disabled children in separate institutions for care, treatment or education.

The EFA acknowledged this statement in 2002 and worked to build global partnerships to ensure disabled learners are included. In response, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was created in 2008 and created international law.32 It is important to recognize that the approach to inclusive education does not just aid students with disabilities, but helps marginalized groups, such as females. UNESCO stated in 2008 that “inclusive education can be viewed as a general guiding principle to strengthen education for sustainable development, lifelong learning for all and equal access of all levels of society to learning opportunities so as to implement the principles of inclusive education.” It is also important to realize that students with disabilities may belong to more than one group, increasing their vulnerability to receiving quality education. Inclusion can address many forms of discrimination.33 Disability is understood differently in many communities and cultures. To create an understandable approach to inclusion, there must be a definition of inclusion. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities defines people with disabilities as, “those who have longterm physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.”

16 This definition allows for a broad method to disability that recognizes the importance of the environment to the individual.34 Inclusive education requires all children to have access to schooling in their communities and have appropriate learning opportunities to reach their full potential. This type of education includes having an open learning potential for each student and reforming the curriculum to pay more attention to student deficiencies. Students need to actively participate in the learning process and there needs to be a curriculum with individualized instruction. Teachers also need to focus on inclusion rather than exclusion. In order to achieve an inclusive approach, schools need to exhibit inclusive values and treat all of their students equally. This means making sure every student feels as though they belong and can participate in learning. Exclusion needs to be reduced and more diversity needs to be promoted in the classroom. Schools need to be improved for the staff, parents and students to create a positive school community.35 There are many reasons why inclusion is important within a classroom. Inclusion can change a school’s attitude towards diversity and there will be less of a stigma around children with disabilities. This is due to children without disabilities being able to learn tolerance. Students with disabilities will also have access to a more diverse curriculum and can often have higher academic achievement in an integrated classroom.36 Educating children with disabilities can benefit countries economically. In 2005, the World Bank stated that, “disability is associated with long-term poverty in the sense that children with disabilities are less likely to acquire the human capital that will allow them to earn higher incomes.� Educating disabled children reduces welfare costs that could be spent on these students in the future. It also allows the caregivers to pursue jobs when the disabled children are in school.

17 Educating these students help them become effective members of the labor force. This is important in maintaining a flourishing economy.37 Many countries have struggled with providing schooling for students with disabilities.

Problems associated with inclusive education include lack of coordination and collaboration, making provisions in education, limited amount of social service providers, and lack of data and financial support. In the 1920s Soviet Union, Vygotsky hypothesized that disabilities can be corrected with the proper services. Defectology is the belief that children with disabilities are defective from the norm. This caused the study of disability to evolve into two different disciplines: psychological and pedagogical. These two different approaches led to systematically placing children depending on their disability. The medical profession usually followed defectology and would support institutional care. Children with a more mild learning disability were sent to special schools where they did not receive the support they needed.38 The total amount of children recognized as disabled has tripled from 500,000 to 1.5 million, due to more recognition of disability. UNICEF obtains this information from hospital registries, data on the amount of children in institutions, and children registered by parents or doctors. There are often flaws in the data that UNICEF receives in that disabilities are not always recorded after birth, the data does not include disabilities that develop after birth, parents often fail to register their child as disabled, responsibility is often divided between government ministries, some children do not attend school, and milder disabilities are often not recorded. Many different definitions of disability also cause conflict. There needs to be more data on the education of children with disabilities. National-level education data often does not provide enough information on students with disabilities.39

18 During the past few years, there has been more of a shift towards recognizing people with community has created a social model where the objective is to change the individual with a disability. Despite the universal ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), promoting inclusion, and de-institutionalizing, some countries still have not made much progress.40 Institutionalization remains an overwhelming policy in many countries. More than 626,000 children live in these institutions. Countries that place a higher number of children with disabilities in institutions are countries where institutionalized care of orphans is accepted. Some countries with severe economic problems experienced difficulties in finding resources to improve the standards of the institutions. Students often suffer from poor diet, cold temperatures, insanitary conditions and lack of staff. Moreover, emphasis in assessment of students with disabilities has remain medically focused. Efforts have been made to change the assessment to include social, emotional and educational needs. UNICEF has revealed that many countries have focused on the defectology model.41 There has been a growing understanding within countries that all students have a right to education, despite some countries still having a stigma towards people with disabilities. National education laws in a majority of countries state that children have a right to receive education in mainstream schools, including individualized instruction. However, integration and inclusion are not always clearly deciphered and are often interchanged. Current provisions include specialized schools, correctional education centers, special and inclusive classrooms and homeschooling.

Inclusive classrooms exist in many countries through NGOs. Children with mild disabilities are usually placed in these classrooms. Disabled children often live away from mainstream society in institutions with limited contact to the outside world, causing discrimination and negative attitudes.

19 In addition, language used towards people with disability often causes stereotypes. The persistence of negative attitudes towards children with disabilities prevents inclusive education implementation. Many teachers have these discriminatory attitudes.42 Many governments have ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It emphasizes equality in education and the full development of a child. It was created to reaffirm the rights that children with disabilities have. It creates a wide range of obligations to remove barriers that impede rights and give children with disabilities stronger protection. The Committee on the Rights of the Child has fully stressed that inclusive education must be the goal of educating students with disabilities. The Committee on the Rights of the Child identified four rights used as general principles. These include non-discrimination, the child’s best interests, proper development, and the right of the child to be taken seriously. These principles need to be understood when advocating for the rights of students with disabilities. Commitments to children with disabilities continue to be violated.43 A rights-based approach to education involves seven principles of human rights. This includes the principle that human rights are universal and inalienable. Human rights are indivisible and recognition on one’s own rights involves the recognition of others. It also involves the statement that all individuals are equal. All people are able to participate in the civic process and feel empowered. In addition, a human rights-based approach involves having respect for the law.

A rights-based approach involves recognition of the entitlement of every child to education. A relevant curriculum must be created that reflects the way children learn. The education must be delivered in an environment that respects the children.44 Governments operating under the CRC took measures to fulfill the right to education by promoting inclusive education and helping children benefit from it, such as having physical

20 adaptions to schools and changing the curriculum. These governments respect the right to education by avoiding actions that would prevent children from access to education. This includes declaring some children as uneducable and the issues related to testing systems. Governments also protect the right to education by removing barriers, such as teachers not accepting students with disabilities and bullying. There are many things a community could do to help students with disabilities. Local authorities can provide more funding to make sure schools are adapted for students with disabilities and resource centers are created. Individual schools can make sure that the culture and policies of the school fit with inclusive education. Parents can make sure they send their children to school and support their children’s education in an inclusive environment.

Children should also support their peers in the inclusive schooling environment. The area surrounding schools should create an environment of respect.45 Governments should invest in measures to help students with disabilities have the same right to education. This includes removing the barriers impeding access to education and supporting parents to help their children gain access to education. Early identification and assessment needs to be improved to ensure that every child is identified as having a disability as early as possible. It is also important to have early education for disabled children so they can benefit from later education. Schools also need to accommodate different learning needs and allow children to learn together.46 Education has to be of the highest quality for all children to reach their potential. There must be a child friendly inclusive environment dedicated to providing students with their human rights. A good learning environment creates positive learning opportunities with appropriate support for all children. It also provides support for teachers to teach in inclusive environments.

Rights-based learning involves schools being sensitive to students with disabilities, including their

21 culture. Schools must take a holistic approach to a child’s health and well-being. To realize the rights of a child with a disability, schools must have respect for identity and know that students with disabilities have a right to participate in matters related to their education. Children must be protected from violence, bullying, and harassment within the school environment. UNICEF created the concept of a child-friendly school to have all children be guaranteed a quality of learning opportunities. It also protects a child’s rights within a school. The concept of ChildFriendly Schools creates an operational framework for providing a rights-based approach to inclusive education. A child-friendly school is inclusive, with good quality teaching, a safe environment, and gender sensitive.47 The UN believes that governments should be held accountable to ensuring the access to justice and the rule of law. Common problems that exist within ministries are lack of coordinated strategies and inadequate support. There needs to be a comprehensive plan of action to have governments create the necessary laws and policies. In many countries, mainstream schooling is managed within other administrations, causing students with disabilities to be left out of mainstream education. Administrations need to be aligned in order for inclusion to be understood as integral to the education system. Social work and health ministries would need to have close liaisons. Schools need to be designed with a commitment to inclusive classes. Finance ministries need to work with those who develop policy to make sure enough resources, such as transportation are being allocated to inclusive education. These ministries also need to be aware of protecting children with disabilities. There have been many arguments that these responsibilities should be brought to the local level of government, allowing governments to be innovative to the needs of the area. However, there still needs to be national policy frameworks that support the culture of

22 inclusion. Entitlement to inclusive education may need to be established at the national level. Local officials need to be able to create the necessary budgets.48 There has been large support that residential institutions damage children psychologically, medically, educationally and socially. This includes brain growth deficiencies, cognitive issues, language delays, sensory integration problems and issues such as inattention and hyperactivity.

The CRC states that the care in institutions is of an inferior standard, lacks quality monitoring and exposes children to neglect. However, hundreds and thousands of children remain in institutions.

Deinstitutionalization has to be recognized as a long-term process that’s well-planned. Investment needs to be made in a gradual process to address prejudices and barriers. There needs to be specific legislation that leads to the end of institutions. Community-based services also need to be strengthened. Residential institutions can be turned into inclusive resource centers. Families will need support from the community to help their children at home. Families and children need to have their views expressed during this process.49 Inclusive education often does not get budget commitments. Historically, there has been investment in separate schools due to the lack of government will to make inclusive education available to everyone. Many countries are realizing the inefficiency of having various systems of administration. The most efficient use of funds would be towards teacher training, improving infrastructure and curriculum, and making sure learning materials aid inclusive education. Political authority and finances for schools should be decentralized. The issue is not only the level of resources for students with disabilities, but the distribution of these resources. Per-capita models focus on providing funds based on child counts. Resource-based models depend on the services provided, not amount of children. Output-based models determine cost effectiveness in terms of outcome for the students. These models encourage incentives for schools, equity for disabled

23 students, and better monitoring of the use of funds. There needs to be a means to ensure funds are used correctly with monitoring at two governmental levels.50 More countries need to ratify the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to ensure fewer people are discriminated against. Families need to be aware of their rights to nondiscrimination. There is also a shortage of quality data on disabilities in many countries and countries need to have information about the prevalence of disability. Most systems rely on a ‘label approach,’ which fails to provide meaningful information. Reliable data collection can lead to the creation of sound policy. Information needs to be collected on prevalence, barriers and support, and impact on the family. Disability must be defined and governments need to ensure that children are registered as having a disability. Education, health and social welfare ministries can provide this information. Governments should also aid in providing information. Regular collection of data is necessary.51 Non-government organizations are important in the quest for children to have a right to education. These organizations could help families gain information on their legal rights, including national, as well as international. Families can learn what services are available and how decisions related to education are made. NGOs can help families advocate for themselves and challenge violations of their rights.52

Bloc Positions Africa Around half a million children with disabilities have been prevented from entering Africa’s education system. Children with disabilities in Africa face widespread discrimination. These

24 children are then classified based on their disabilities. South Africa was among the first to ratify the UN Disability Rights Treaty in 2007. The government created a policy to end the exclusion of disabled children from schools in 2001, but has not put the policy in place. Elin Martίnez, a children’s rights researcher at Human Rights Watch, claims that, “the South African government needs to admit that it is not providing quality education to all of its children – in fact, no schooling at all for many who have disabilities.”53 Asia China has tried to create a more inclusive approach to education using a National Plan for Medium and Long-Term Education Reform and Development 2010-2020. In this document, the government creates parameters for implementing inclusive education. The goal is to have every city of at least 300,000 residents have at least one Special Education school. There have been major obstacles to inclusive education in China, including large class sizes and rote memorization of information. This often makes it difficult for children with disabilities to thrive. There is also not much training for teachers because of limited funds. This causes a lot of children with disabilities to drop out of school.

In Insular South East Asia, many children with disabilities do not attend mainstream school, but attend specialized schools. Malaysia has a policy to deliver special education for children with both single and multiple disabilities. The Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia are aware of the special education needs for children with disabilities and address these needs. Parents of children with disabilities have a right to enroll their children with disabilities in special schools in Indonesia. These schools are often expensive. Occasionally, state schools accept children with disabilities, but often do not have the right accommodations. Malaysia categorizes students by

25 their disability and has specialized schools for vision and hearing impaired students. The Philippines is still trying to deal with educational exclusion.54 Europe Countries such as Germany and Sweden often have difficulty placing children with cognitive impairments in inclusive classrooms. Most European countries invest in specialized schools. Germany has a list of ten impairments that allows students to be placed in specialized schools. These schools are often created for children with visual, hearing or intellectual impairments. Finland and Estonia dedicate special school resources to students with behavioral issues. Greece, Ireland and Iceland have schools for children with mobility problems.55 South America In Latin America, only about twenty to thirty percent of children with disabilities attend school. Poor attendance of disabled children can be reflected from the lack of transportation, teacher training, furniture and equipment. Disabled children in South America cannot easily access learning materials or enter and exit the school infrastructure easily. Children with disabilities also face much discrimination in South America. People with disabilities in Honduras have a fifty-one percent illiteracy rate. There is a nineteen percent illiteracy rate in the general population of Honduras. In Brazil, only twenty percent of schools are accessible to children with disabilities.

Less than ten percent of schools in Mexico are accessible to students with disabilities. Ninety percent of disabled children in Surinam attend segregated schools.56

26 Potential and Guiding Questions 1) Does your country have a stigma towards children with disabilities?

2) Does your country have separate schools for students with disabilities?

3) Is your country’s government open to inclusive education?

4) How can UNICEF promote inclusive education worldwide?

5) Are there other UN programs or even NGOs that can help to address the problem of education for children with disabilities?

Additional Resources The Right of Children with Disabilities to Education: A Rights-Based Approach to Inclusive Education http://www.unicef.org/ceecis/IEPositionPaper_ENGLISH.pdf

UNICEF: Disabilities-Education http://www.unicef.org/disabilities/index_65316.html

27

1

@unicef. "Who We Are." UNICEF. UNICEF, n.d. Web. https://www.unicef.org/about/who/index_introduction.html 2

@unicef. "What We Do." UNICEF. UNICEF, n.d. Web. https://www.unicef.org/what-we-do

3

@unicef. "Home." UNICEF. UNICEF, N.p., 4 Oct. 2016. Web. https://www.unicef.org/aboutus 4

@unicef. "What We Do." UNICEF. UNICEF, n.d. Web.https://www.unicef.org/what-we-do

5

Topic, By. "Malnutrition - UNICEF DATA." UNICEF DATA. N.p., n.d. Web. https://www.unicef.org/nutrition/ 6

@unicef. "Education." UNICEF. N.p., 11 July 2012. Web. https://www.unicef.org/education/

7

"Hunger and Malnutrition." KidsHealth - the Web's Most Visited Site about Children's Health.

The Nemours Foundation, n.d. Web.http://kidshealth.org/en/parents/hunger.html 8

"Improving Child Nutrition: The Achievable Imperative for Global Progress." UNICEF, Apr. 2013. Web. https://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Nutrition_Report_final_lo_res_8_April.pdf 9

"UNICEF's Approach to Scaling Up Nutrition: For Mothers and Their Children." UNICEF, June 2015. Web. http://wphna.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/2015-06-Scaling-Up-NutritionUNICEF.pdf 10

"UNICEF's Approach to Scaling Up Nutrition: For Mothers and Their Children." UNICEF, June 2015. Web. http://wphna.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/2015-06-Scaling-Up-NutritionUNICEF.pdf 11

"Improving Child Nutrition: The Achievable Imperative for Global Progress." UNICEF, Apr. 2013. Web. https://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Nutrition_Report_final_lo_res_8_April.pdf 12

Ibid.

13

Ibid.

14

Ibid.

15

Ibid.

16

Ibid.

17

Ibid.

18

Ibid.

19

Ibid.

20

Ibid.

28

21

"UNICEF's Approach to Scaling Up Nutrition: For Mothers and Their Children." UNICEF, June 2015. Web. http://wphna.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/2015-06-Scaling-Up-Nutrition-UNICEF.pdf 22

"Improving Child Nutrition: The Achievable Imperative for Global Progress." UNICEF, Apr. 2013. Web. https://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Nutrition_Report_final_lo_res_8_April.pdf 23

"UNICEF's Approach to Scaling Up Nutrition: For Mothers and Their Children." UNICEF, June 2015. Web. http://wphna.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/2015-06-Scaling-Up-NutritionUNICEF.pdf 24

By This Time People Were Again Self-sufficient in Food and in. "2. IMPACT OF ARMED CONFLICT ON THE NUTRITIONAL SITUATION OF CHILDREN." STUDY ON THE IMPACT OF ARMED CONFLICTS ON THE NUTRITIONAL SITUATION OF CHILDREN. FAO, n.d. Web. http://www.fao.org/docrep/005/w2357e/w2357e00.htm "Improving Child Nutrition: The Achievable Imperative for Global Progress." UNICEF, Apr. 2013. Web. https://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Nutrition_Report_final_lo_res_8_April.pdf 25

26

Ibid.

27

Ibid.

28

"Treatment and Prevention of Malnutrition in Latin America: Focus on Chile and Bolivia."

Food and Nutrition Bulletin. U.S. National Library of Medicine, June 2014. Web. 08 Dec. 2016. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25069292 "Improving Child Nutrition: The Achievable Imperative for Global Progress." UNICEF, Apr. 2013. Web. https://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Nutrition_Report_final_lo_res_8_April.pdf 29

30

"The Right of Children with Disabilities to Education: A ..." UNICEF, 2012. Web. http://www.unicef.org/ceecis/IEPositionPaper_ENGLISH.pdf 31

Ibid.

32

Ibid.

33

Ibid.

34

Ibid.

35

Ibid.

36

Ibid.

37

Ibid.

38

Ibid.

29

39

Ibid.

40

Ibid.

41

Ibid.

42

Ibid.

43

Ibid.

44

Ibid.

45

Ibid.

46

Ibid.

47

Ibid.

48

Ibid.

49

Ibid.

50

Ibid.

51

Ibid.

52

Ibid.

53

@hrw. "South Africa: Education Barriers for Children with Disabilities." Human Rights Watch. Human Rights Watch, 2016. Web. 04 Nov. 2016. https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/08/18/south-africa-education-barriers-children-disabilities 54

Clarke, David, and Jennifer Sawyer. "Girls, Disabilities and School Education in the East Asia Pacific Region." UNGEI, May 2014. Web. http://www.ungei.org/resources/files/EAP_UNGEI_Gender_Disabilities_and_School_Education _FINAL.pdf 55

Schmitt, Marie José, and Mark Priestley. "Submission to the UN Committee on the Convention on the ..." Academic Network of European Disability Experts, Apr. 2011. Web. 3 Nov. 2016. https://www.in1school.nl/images/kennisopinie/onderzoekenin1school/Inclusion_Europe_CRPD_Submission_Article_24.pdf Disability in Latin America & The Caribbean, World Bank, Site Sources-Fact Sheet. http://siteresources.worldbank.org/DISABILITY/Resources/Regions/LAC/LACfactsheetEng.pdf 56