In albania 64% of children with disabilities do not attend the compulsory education.

Tirana, 13th of May 2014– Albanian Coalition for Child Education (ACCE), here by seeks to draw the attention of the Government and in particular of the Ministry of Education and Sports, civil society organizations, parents and teachers to take concrete measures in order to guarantee that children with disabilities enjoy the universal right to quality and inclusive education.

The right to educationof children with disabilities is a fundamental right, which is sanctioned in international and national acts. The Convention of the United Nations, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, emphasize the obligation of States  to recognize the right of persons with disabilities to education and to realize it without discrimination and based on the principle of equal opportunities.

Although in recent yearsinitiatives undertaken in the framework of guaranteeing access to children with disabilities in public compulsary education system have progressed, many children with disabilities in Albania do not enjoy their universal right to quality and inclusive education.

This is not only because of the prejudices that parents have or discrimination perceived by these children, but also because of the significant lack of adequate schools’ infrastructure and absence of supporting teachers in all schools attended by children with disabilities.

Based in official data for the school year 2011-2012, it results that 5678 or 64% of children with disabilitiesof group age 6-15 years old do not attend the compulsory education.

Given this data collected in the framework of the Global Week “Education for All”, Albanian Coaltion for Child Education recommends:

• The implemented the law No. 69/2012 “On secondary education in the Republic of Albania” specifically articles no. 64 and 65, and the Normative Provisions, Chapter XV “The Education of Children with Disabilities”;
• Improved statistics on children with disabilities and their publication;
• Ensuring supporting teachers in all schools attended by children with disabilities;
• Inclusion of parents of children with disabilities in the decision-making processes of the school board;
• Adaption of schools’ infrastructure and equipments with teaching materials according to children’s with disabilities needs
• Orientation of youth with disabilities to vocational education;