WHAT IS DISABILITY?

A disability is a condition (financial, spiritual, economic, social…) that impairs the usual standard of an individual.  The term is used to refer to a functioning of an individual that includes physical impairment, sensory impairment, cognitive impairment, intellectual impairment, mental illness, and various types of chronic disease.

Types of Disabilities

·         Developmental Disabilities

·         Mental Disabilities

·         Physical Disabilities

o    Visual Impairment

o    Hearing Impairment

o    Mobility Impairment

o    Head Injury

o    Chronic Illnesses

·         Other Disabilities

o    Substance Abuse / Addictions

o    Elderly

The World Health Organization estimated the number of persons with disabilities around 650 million in the world. Persons with disabilities constitute the largest marginalized minority community in the world. Their needs have been overlooked in the development agenda despite their equal rights to participate and benefit from social and economic affairs in the life of their nations.  This situation is particularly difficult in Africa where persons with disabilities are provided little opportunities towards any rights to work, access to knowledge or to simply become active members in their own economic society. Their number continues to increase due to armed conflicts, rising poverty, lack of access to proper health care service, nutrition.  Children appear to be the most marginalized among persons with disabilities.

WHAT CAUSES DISABILITIES?

There are various causes of disabilities: Biological factors, genetic or hereditary factors and accidents.  Some of the causes resulting from the types of disabilities are:

Causes of Physical Disability

·         Medical conditions

·         Accidents

 Causes of Learning Disability

·         Before Birth

·         During Birth

·         After Birth

 Causes of Hearing Disability

·         Disease or Illness

·         Physical Trauma

·         Genetic

·         Long Term exposure to Environmental Noise

·         Medications

 Causes of Visual Disabilities

·          Eye infections

·         Viruses

·         Diabetes

·         Brain injury

·         Stroke

·         Viruses

·         Accidents

·         Glaucoma