4.1.2 Disability in Honduras
Various estimations suggest that there are almost 700,000 persons with disabilities living in the country, which is equivalent to 10% of the population. The 2002 survey recorded 177,516 persons in Honduras as having a disability, but the definition used was rather narrow. 68% of those covered by the census were unemployed (compared to 49% for the total population (see CIARH, 2003)), 53% were illiterate, 44% of children with disabilities did not have access to school (compared to 8% for non-disabled children), and only 17% of people with disabilities received any kind of rehabilitation (see CIARH, 2003). Charitable and welfare approaches remain very common(Centre for International Rehabilitation, 2004). Despite the existence of a new legal framework for disability (October 2005), there has been no genuine implementation of this law. Honduras has three umbrella organisations active in the field of disability:
- CIARH (Coordinadora de Instituciones y Associaciones de Rehabilitacion de Honduras), which was founded in 1996, and today has a membership of over half of all organisations working for people with disabilities, plus a few DPOs;
- FENOPDIH (Federación Nacional de Organismos de Personas con Discapacidad de Honduras), a DPO federation that was created in 2001; and
- the Federation of Parents' Organisations (FENAPEPENESH), which was formed in 2005 to promote the rights of children with disabilities, and currently consists of 21 member organisations.
