This paper was commissioned in preparation for the 2010 Education for All Global Monitoring Report. It looks at the scale and causes of the educational marginalisation of disabled people in Ethiopia and Rwanda, and reviews
selected education policies and plans in relation to disability. The paper provides examples of initiatives for disabled people’s education and highlights key issues relating to education for disabled people in Ethiopia and Rwanda, and beyond. Available statistics indicate that very few disabled children are receiving quality education in Ethiopia and Rwanda, either through inclusive or segregated education, and that provision (especially in special schools) is primarily in urban areas. However, the limitations and unreliability of statistics on disability, especially in relation to education, are also clearly illustrated. It is argued that attention could be given to improving the collection of statistical data, but this should not be either a pre-requisite or a substitute for providing education for disabled people. The paper highlights the lack of information available from the perspective of education beneficiaries in Ethiopia and Rwanda, and the lack of documenting of experience around special needs education and inclusive education. It is suggested that efforts to improve documenting and sharing of existing experience could lead to improvements in the scaling up of successful initiatives in these two countries. The review of policy and project documentation reveals that both countries are moving forward with a mixture of segregated and inclusive education for disabled learners. In both cases this is a pragmatic move, as special schools have been in existence for several decades and they contain investments that should not be lightly discarded. It is also a move which needs reviewing by policy makers in line with the strong commitments to inclusive education laid out in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Education sector policies are weak in relation to disability, special needs education and inclusive education. There is also limited guidance as to how disabled people fit into the wider ‘marginalised’ or ‘special needs’ groups, and how those who are implementing policies can ensure that disabled people are not subsequently sidelined within these groups.