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Persons with Disabilities in Portugal: Human Rights Indicators 2018

Capa do Relatório 2018 Capa do Relatório 2018

The report 'Persons with Disabilities in Portugal: Human Rights Indicators 2018' has been developed by the Disability and Human Rights Observatory (ODDH) hosted by ISCSP - Universidade de Lisboa and sought to systematize information on the situation of persons with disabilities in Portugal, using existing national and international data sources, in order to draw indicators to measure the progress made in the fulfilment of human rights of persons with disabilities in Portugal. The main results are presented below:

Education
•    Between 2016/17 and 2017/18, the greatest increase in the number of students with special educational needs was registered in secondary education (+15%).
•    57% of students with a Specific Individual Curriculum (CEI) or who attend a Specialized Unit spend less than 40% of the school time with the rest of the class.
•    The ratio of students with special educational needs per specialized staff member (schools and Resource Centers for Inclusion) worsened since 2014/15: from 24 to 27 students per specialized human resource.
•    In the 2017/18 school year, 181 students with special educational needs enrolled in higher education through the quota for students with disabilities, an increase of 28% from the previous school year.
•    Only about half of higher education facilities provide adaptations and resources for students with disabilities, such as accessible buildings (56%), special regulations (56%), accessible websites (52%) and support services (46%).

Employment
•    In 2016, the activity rate of persons with disabilities in Portugal was much lower than that of persons without a disability (66,7% and 85,7%, respectively).
•    People with a severe disability report the lowest employment rates in Portugal (35,6%, contrasting with a 73,2% activity rate among persons without a disability).
•    Registered unemployment decreased 19,3% between 2016-2017 in the general population, but only 2,0% among persons with disabilities. Between 2011 and 2017, it decreased 34,5% in the general population, but increased 24,0% among persons with disabilities.
•    In 2017, the majority of persons with disabilities registered as unemployed were over 25 years old (86,8%), in search of a new job (81,6%) and unemployed for over one year (60,4%).
•    Only 11% of persons with disabilities registered as unemployed were placed in a job in 2017, even if there was a 159% increase in the number of job placements between 2011 and 2017.
•    Support for the adaptation of the workspace and removal of architectonic barriers was provided to only 6 beneficiaries in 2017. The number of people who received support for the acquisition of assistive devices through the Institute for Employment and Vocational Training (IEFP) decreased 32% since the previous year.
•    65,8% of persons with disabilities who benefited from general employment measures in 2017 were placed in social firms or “socially necessary work” (CEI and CEI+).
•    In 2016, persons with disabilities represented only 0,51% of the work force of private companies with 10 or more workers. 71% of these workers had a moderate disability.
•    The ratio of workers with disabilities in public administration is on the rise and reached 2,42% in 2017.

Life conditions and social protection
•    The risk of poverty or social exclusion in Portugal is higher among persons with disabilities than among persons without a disability, both in 16-64 age group (+16 p.p.), and in the over 65 age group (+8,2 p.p.).
•    The gap in the risk of poverty and social exclusion among persons with and without a disability is higher in Portugal than in the EU average (+15,7 p.p. in the 16-64 age group and +5,6 p .p. in the over 65 age group).
•    The greatest risk of poverty or social exclusion is found in households with persons with severe disabilities (36,7%, +15,3 p.p. than in the households of persons without a disability and +6,4% than in the households of persons with moderate disabilities).
•    The beneficiaries of all disability related benefits in Portugal are predominantly male. This difference is wider in family benefits, such as special education supports (+30 p.p.), supplement to the family allowance for children with disabilities (+24 p.p.) and constant attendance allowance (+16 p.p.).
 

This report was presented publicly on December 13, 2018 during the III ODDH Meeting – Disability, Decent Work and Citizenship. The aim of the Disability and Human Rights Observatory (ODDH) is to follow-up the development of disability policy in Portugal and Portuguese-speaking countries and to promote participatory processes of monitoring and promotion of disability rights.

Download full report (only available in Portuguese).

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