Supporting participation and inclusion of individuals with Disabilities through Assistive Technology

Person with disabilities (PWDs) is the one of the most stigmatized, excluded and disenfranchised groups in India. They are likely to have poorer health, less education and employment opportunity. Even when they grow up, they live in extreme poverty, illiteracy and face more inequalities and prejudices than their counterparts without disability. Apart from this, girls with disabilities face double discrimination due to gender, disability and other compounding factors such as poverty and ethnicity. Approximately less than 10% of children with disabilities in low-income countries, including India, go to school. Besides poverty and prejudice, the lack of access to assistive technology (AT) and inaccessible school environments are major barriers, which restrict PWDs to access education, to gain joyful employment and to participate in the civic life as well as in the society at large. This article discusses an evolving understanding of assistive technology and its relationship with disability. It also explains how assistive technology can support the active participation and full inclusion of IWDs in very spheres of life.