The Circumstances of Children with and without Disabilities or Significant Cognitive Delay Living in Ordinary Households in 30 Middle- and Low-Income Countries

Abstract

Home-based early intervention is a key component of strategic approaches to preventing the loss of developmental potential among young children in middle- and low-income countries. We undertook secondary analysis of nationally representative data collected in 30 middle- and low-income countries during Round 6 (2017-) of UNICEF’s Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys. Our analyses, involving over 100,000 children with/without disabilities or significant cognitive delay, indicated that children with disabilities and/or significant cognitive delay were more likely than their peers to: be living in relative household poverty and in rural areas; have a mother with only primary level education; live in households where intimate partner violence was considered acceptable by the child’s mother; be less likely to be receiving any pre-school education; have a mother with disabilities; receive low levels of parental stimulation; be exposed to violent parental discipline. For many of these indicators of poorer home circumstances, the level of risk was notably higher for children with significant cognitive delay than for children with disabilities. Our study findings suggest the need to consider tailored, evidence-based approaches to reduce and (potentially) overcome the increased risks that young children with disabilities and young children with significant cognitive delay experience in middle- and low-income countries.

Creating Family-Centred Support for Children with Developmental Disabilities in Africa. Examples of Local Community Interventions

“…Poverty alleviation is a further identified need that requires more sustained attention as the evidence demonstrates the difference this makes to a family's quality of life. In particular cash transfers under governmental social protection schemes have shown to be effective [16]. Partnerships with existing schemes are worthy of investigation, allied with instigating income generating projects for families, and ensuring that safeguards are in place to prevent misuse of funds.…”

“…Business training is also offered to all caregivers; both to those with deaf children and those whose children have developmental delays. In addition, Nzeve has a separate project focusing on Income Savings and Lending Groups (ISALs) that specifically targets persons with disabilities and their caregivers in rural communities [16]. These beneficiaries include other families identified from the community.…”

Interventions for Health Promotion and Obesity Prevention for Children and Adolescents with Developmental Disabilities: a Systematic Review

“…Childhood obesity in general is recognized as a global phenomenon and is believed to be growing at a faster rate in many developing countries. Similarly, prevalence of childhood disability is high in low- and lower-middle-income countries (Emerson & Llewellyn, 2021 ). Therefore, it is important for international funding bodies to support research on obesity prevention among children and adolescents with DD in low- and middle-income countries (Chung, 2017 ).…”

The prevalence of disability among Roma and non-Roma children in four West Balkan countries

“…16 Without prevalence of disability data for children with disability and significant cognitive delay compared to their non-disabled peers, the nature and extent of the interventions that may be required to overcome the likely loss of their developmental potential cannot be determined. 17 The primary aim of the present paper is to partially redress this omission by estimating the prevalence of disability and significant cognitive delay among Roma and non-Roma children in four West Balkan countries.…”