The UNRWA Inclusive Education Policy reaffirms the Agency’s commitment to the realization of the universal right of all children to an education. Inclusive education is an important pillar of the UNRWA Education Programme in Gaza and is closely linked to its Disability Programme.
In the current school year (2015-2016) there are approximately 10,640 persons (6,409 boys and 4,231 girls) with disabilities studying in UNRWA schools in Gaza. These students live with various major motor, fine motor, visual, hearing, health, speech and other impairments. Nonetheless, they are enthusiastic to learn and participate in traditional schooling.
Special Needs students are encouraged to attend UNRWA schools, and the Inclusive Education approach helps them to integrate into mainstream schooling by providing them with extra support. In cases where more specialized support is needed, the Agency refers students to Community-Based Rehabilitation Centres (CBRCs). UNRWA currently supports seven CBRCs across the Gaza Strip, providing services to persons with disabilities, including educational services, to approximately 800 refugee children. Further, the Agency directly supports 132 visually impaired children through the UNRWA Rehabilitation Centre for Visually Impaired in Gaza city. There are also 11 learning support centres in Gaza, each of which provide special services to children in need.
Fourteen year old Moaaz Abu Daher is one of fifteen children with special needs attending an UNRWA school in Deir el Balah. In addition to receiving inclusive teaching methods in the classroom, the students receive psychosocial support and appropriate health and medical resources.
Moaaz is a keen footballer and enjoys playing sports with his friends at school. He also has a prosthetic leg, having had his leg amputated due to bone cancer. He believes his disability will never hinder him in his sports and study.
Some UNRWA students also receive speech therapy lessons at home; their parents are provided with information and awareness on special needs. UNRWA teachers have also been trained on the Inclusive Education approach in order to enable them to identify and respond to the diverse needs of students in a professional manner.
“We try to give the students some stress release activities, such as drawing,” said 46 year old Samir Hamda, a school counselor. “We also conduct awareness-raising sessions on special needs for parents.”
UNRWA’s approach to inclusive education is aligned with the global 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, wherein Sustainable Development Goal number four is to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning
opportunities for all.” It recognizes that education is essential for the success of all the SDGs.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
UNRWA is confronted with an increased demand for services resulting from a growth in the number of registered Palestine refugees, the extent of their vulnerability and their deepening poverty. UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions and financial support has been outpaced by the growth in needs. As a result, the UNRWA Programme Budget, which supports the delivery of core essential services, operates with a large shortfall, projected for 2016 to stand at US$ 81 million. UNRWA emergency programmes and key projects, also operating with large shortfalls, are funded through separate funding portals.
UNRWA is a United Nations agency established by the General Assembly in 1949 and mandated to provide assistance and protection to some 5 million registered Palestine refugees. Its mission is to help Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank and the Gaza Strip achieve their full human development potential, pending a just and lasting solution to their plight. UNRWA services encompass education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, and microfinance.
For more information, please contact:
Christopher Gunness Spokesperson, Director of Advocacy & Strategic Communications Mobile: +972 (0)54 240 2659 Office: +972 (0)2 589 0267 c.gunness@unrwa.org
Sami Mshasha Chief of Communications, Arabic Language Spokesperson Mobile: +972 (0)54 216 8295 Office: +972 (0)2 589 0724 s.mshasha@unrwa.org