Sightsavers’ Johannes Trimmel and the International Disability Alliance’s José Viera reflect on the progress achieved by UK aid’s flagship disability inclusive development programme and what urgently needs to happen to maintain momentum.

We are living in testing times. As climate change, conflict and inequality increasingly redefine the global landscape, governments, donors and development actors must invest in solutions that work – solutions that are rights-based, resilient, fit for the future and provide value for money. Inclusive Futures, the UK government’s flagship disability inclusive development programme, offers exactly that.

Now in its final year, we are proud that this UK aid-funded initiative led by Sightsavers and the International Disability Alliance, alongside a network of partners, including ADD International, BBC Media Action, BRAC, Humanity & Inclusion, Institute of Development Studies, Light for the World, Social Development Direct, and Sense International has delivered tangible, lasting impact for millions. Inclusive Futures has driven change to make systems more inclusive, advanced economic development, increased the number of children with disabilities in education, improved access to health and confronted harmful stigma. Key to our success has been ensuring people with disabilities and their representative organisations are at the centre.

But with aid budgets shrinking and global priorities shifting, disability inclusive initiatives risk disappearing. The hard-fought progress toward disability rights and creating a more equal, fair and prosperous world is now in jeopardy. Without bold action, people with disabilities and other marginalised groups will fall behind again and be hit the hardest.

From projects to systems change

Beyond delivering high-achieving projects, the Inclusive Futures partnership has been focussed on creating long-term, sustainable system change and implementing inclusive policies, especially by local government authorities. These efforts have been spearheaded by people with disabilities and their representative bodies themselves. Organisations of people with disabilities (OPDs) played a core role in designing, implementing and generating evidence in Inclusive Futures projects. They led in taking up dialogue with government authorities to adopt disability inclusive practices, leading to a lasting change beyond the lifespan of the Inclusive Futures programme.

We are delighted to be able to highlight several significant examples of success. We know that with further investment, our achievements could continue to reach even further.

1. To date, Inclusive Futures has leveraged £9.3 million in financial commitments from local governments to support disability inclusive education, sexual and reproductive health services, livelihoods and social protection initiatives within their regular work.
2. In Nepal, where we’ve consistently collected data on children with disabilities using the Washington Group Child Functioning Module in two municipalities, we’ve convinced the government to embed this approach in the national education management system. Going forwards, 250 municipalities will screen 83,000 children for disability annually and will be in a stronger position to identify and support them.
3. In Bangladesh, our work has led to significant policy change. Now, 2,444 government primary schools in two districts of the country allocate specific resources for children with disabilities. This has so far transformed the education experience of 14,000 children.
4. In Kaduna state, Nigeria, the Inclusive Futures team helped ensure a £15.8 million plan was launched to improve sexual and reproductive health rights for 800,000 women and girls with disabilities. The Kaduna State Ministry of Health has committed to fund 40% of this initiative – a major step towards sustainable, locally owned solutions.

These four examples show what inclusion looks like. We are incredibly proud of the achievements of OPDs and other partners who have led these efforts, but we also know that there is a lot more that could and needs to be done.