Measuring the effectiveness of disability-inclusive development activities – development of a toolkit
Many developing countries lack reliable information about people with disabilities and the barriers which restrict their participation. This is an obstacle to disability-inclusive development, as without this information, the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of services and development programs which include people with disabilities is a challenge.
In 2009, the University of Melbourne was awarded an AusAID-funded Australian Development Research Award (ADRA) to develop a toolkit which will assist Governments, NGOs and other implementers of development programs to measure:
- Disability prevalence
- Barriers to and facilitators of the social participation of people with disabilities
- Effectiveness of development programs to improve the lives of people with disabilities
The toolkit will also assist users to explore the link between poverty and disability.
The award is managed by the Nossal Institute for Global Health in collaboration with the Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA). Together, the research team is developing a questionnaire which will be field tested through partners in Bangladesh and Fiji using cluster random sampling methodology.
The first stage of the research has been to review literature surrounding existing tools which purport to measure disability prevalence, quality of life, poverty and social participation. Indicative items selected include:
- Disability-prevalence items based on surveys such as the Washington City Group and Kessler 10 Survey for mental health
- Socio-demographic items
- Quality of life questions drawn from WHO-QOL-BREF and the WHO Disability Assessment Schedule II
- Items developed to measure awareness of rights, and barriers to community participation.
Items selected for use must link to the International Classification of Functioning and the social model of disability.
In accordance with the rights-based approach, active participation of people with disabilities has been sought at every stage of the project. The research proposal was developed in consultation with Disabled Persons Organisations (DPOs) in Australia and the field testing sites, and an initial version of the toolkit was developed in consultation with representatives of DPOs and disability service providers in Bangladesh. Toolkit testing will be conducted by our Bangladesh partner, ICDDR-B in collaboration with several key Bangladeshi DPOs, and people with disabilities will fill key Bangladesh research positions. The project takes a capacity development approach to recruitment; actively seeking to build on the skills of people with disabilities in Bangladesh and Fiji to enable their participation through working in research coordination and data collection. Both project advisory committees in Australia and Bangladesh include representatives of DPOs.