Palestine Economy Portal

On the third of December, all countries around the world celebrate the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. This day has been approved by the United Nations since 1992 to support people with disabilities, to promote the full and equal participation of persons with disabilities and to take action for the inclusion of persons with disabilities in all aspects of society and development. The theme this year is to increase understanding of disability as a part of the human condition.  On this year and according to the data of the Palestinian Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2019-2020 (PMICS6), PCBS shed light on the reality of children with disabilities in the age group of (2-17 years.)

Children with disabilities in the age group of (2-17 years)

2.4% of children in the age group of (2-4 years) suffer from at least one type of disability*. This percentage increased in Gaza Strip compared to the West Bank, reaching about 3% and 2%, respectively. The percentage of disabilities was about 15% among children in the age group (5-17 years)**, about 17% in the West Bank and about 13% in Gaza Strip.

The results of the survey also showed that the rate of disabilities is higher for male children than for females in all age groups

About 10% of children with disabilities in the age group (5-17 years) are not currently enrolled in education

About 10% of children out of the total number of children with disabilities in the age group (5-17 years) are not currently enrolled in education. Moreover, male children in the age group (5-17 years) of those who are not currently enrolled in education constituted the highest percentage as it reached about 69% compared to about 31% among female children, who are not currently enrolled in education, out of all children with disabilities.

Use of assistive devices among children in the age group of (2-17 years)

About 3% of children aged 2-17 years old suffer from seeing disabilities even with wearing glasses. About 6% of children aged 2-17 years old suffer from hearing disabilities even when they use hearing aids. Also, about 28% of children in the same age group suffer from walking disabilities even with the use of equipment or receiving assistance in walking.

Distribution of children with disabilities in the age group (2-17 years) by type of disability

By tracking the functional capabilities in the Palestinian Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2019-2020 (PMICS6) for children aged 2-4 years, we found that the highest percentage is communication, which reached about 1%, while the highest percentage in the range of functional abilities among children in the age 5- 17 years was anxiety which reached about 10%.

-: Means questions are not directed to this age group.

*: The functional domains of children at the age 2-4 years old include: seeing, hearing, walking, fine motor, communicating, learning, playing, and controlling behavior.

**: The functional domains of children at the age 5-17 years include: seeing, hearing, walking, communication, learning, controlling behavior, self-care, remembering, concentrating, accepting change, making friends, anxiety, and depression.

It should be noted that the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) questionnaire included special modules for collecting data on the prevalence of functional difficulties among children aged 2-17 years according to the information given by the mother or the caretaker.