People with disabilities in Peru face their own personal challenges every day, but the country has received praise for its efforts to alleviate the challenges resulting from disability and poverty in Peru. Nancy Gamarra, the Vice Minister for Women’s Affairs and Vulnerable Peoples, declared a commitment toward enabling Peruvians with disabilities to ‘fully flourish,’ through legislation and regulated mechanisms. This is evidence of movement in the right direction.
3 Key Facts To Know About Disability and Poverty in Peru
Persons with disabilities are classified as anyone who is in a state of vulnerability. With this classification, amongst the indigenous population and migrant population, there is a lack of data that identifies the portion of people with disabilities within these groups. Thus, as the country pushed for improvements in the rights of everyone with a disability, it faced a challenge when ensuring the operations took a fair and intersectional approach to the issue.
There is a close link between disability and poverty in Peru and the older population. According to a recent study, while the older population in extreme poverty is more likely to have a disability, they have limited access to health care services. The study defined disability as ADL disability where the individual’s activities of daily living would be impacted. Results of the study established that more than 60% of people with ADL disability had never been evaluated for preventative measures. Additionally, older Peruvians with an ADL disability had significantly less chance of having insurance compared to individuals without a disability.
Interestingly, half of Peruvians with disabilities are of working age, representing an estimated 1 million people. Unfortunately, their unemployment rate is 12.1%, in stark contrast to the overall population’s unemployment rate of 3.7%.
Movement in the Right Direction
In 2009, the National Institute for Radio and Television established the ‘No Barriers’ program with the mission to promote the visibility of Peruvians with disabilities and ensure disability was no longer considered a hindrance. As part of this program, broadcast television introduced sign language interpretation to make information accessible to individuals with disabilities. This initiative contributed to shaping public policy on appropriate language around disability.
A decade later, in 2019, Peru implemented the National Gender Equality Policy, aligned with its human rights obligations outlined in the National Agreement. The policy aims to address discrimination against women and its root causes. Its goals include reducing violence against women, increasing women’s participation in decision-making and eradicating sociocultural patterns of discrimination in the country’s population. The policy aims to achieve these objectives by 2030, with indicators such as a 40% increase in women’s representation in Congress. Notably, emergency centers for women now cover 100% of the nation, reflecting the progress so far under this policy.
The focus of this policy is on women’s rights, but it has also shed light on broader issues of structural discrimination and lack of diversity, including disability and poverty in Peru. A significant recent achievement in addressing disability and poverty is the launch of the Multisectoral Public Policy on Disability for Development in 2021.
The Multisectoral Public Policy on Disability for Development
This policy will be implemented in 2030, marking the first national public policy focused on disability. Since its implementation, a progress report has recognized the success of the policy. For example, 127 penalties were received by businesses that had an insufficient number of persons with disabilities employed. In addition to this, Peru introduced a protocol to ensure public services can provide appropriate accommodation to persons with disabilities.
Peru’s government mission is to set a new standard for the inclusion and understanding of persons with disabilities within the next seven years.
Positive change is also evident in the work of the Adecco Foundation and its contact with Peruvian companies. The Adecco Group, as part of its work, campaigns for inclusivity in employment globally and one of its partners is the International Labour Organization’s Global Business and Disability Network. With this, the President of the Adecco Group, in consultation with 30 Peruvian companies, shared human resources management practices with a particular acknowledgment of the circumstances of people with disabilities. Findings from this network recognize how improving diversity in employment also benefits businesses. A specialist in ILO’s Bureau for Employers’ Activities, Villamil, explains ‘the inclusion of these people improves the work climate, teamwork, elimination of stereotypes, increased innovation and improved corporate reputation.
It is clear that the country has made promising progress in addressing the relationship between disability and poverty in Peru. With government intervention and companies following suit, Peru’s journey to a more inclusive country spurs reasons for hope.
– Poppy Harris
Photo: Unsplash