DEVELOPMENT ADVISORY TEAM

Promoting Opportunities for People with Disabilities

EMILY CONRON ∴ MACKENZIE DOME CATHERINE FLATLEY ∴ CAILEAN GEARY

Theory of Change Frame approach around BRAC’s core values:

integrity

inclusiveness

innovation

effectiveness

Increasing opportunities and incorporating

reasonable accommodations for

employees with disabilities

Incorporating disability-inclusive approaches into development initiatives

Scaling up medical, educational, and

rehabilitation programs for people with disabilities

Modeling inclusive perspectives and attitudes

towards people with disabilities

A COMPREHENSIVE, INCLUSIVE DISABILITY

POLICY

• Internal - Better employee attendance - Higher retention rate - Improved workplace morale

• External - Improved relationships with people with

disabilities - Empowerment of people with

disabilities and their families and caregivers

- Increased inclusion and mainstreaming of people with disabilities into society

Qualitative Impact

Estimated Initial Costs for BRAC External Costs (Bangladesh Operations)

Population: 150,493,658 % with disabilities: 15,049,366 % treated Y1: 15,049 Cost per person: $140 Total External Costs: $2 mil

Internal Costs (Global Operations) Employees of BRAC: 100,000 Ideal % with disabilities: 10,000 % incorporated Y1: 10 Cost Per Person: $138 Total Internal Costs: $138,000

Final Total: $2 million in Y1

Quantitative Impact

• Founded in 1972 as the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee

• Now the largest non-government organization in the world, known simply as BRAC

• “South-South” development approach: spreading knowledge and best practices to 10 other developing nations

• Current programs reach an estimated 126 million people worldwide, focusing on these priority program areas: - Social and financial empowerment of

women - Grassroots empowerment - Health and education

97,000 community health workers Runs the world’s largest private, secular

education system, with 38,000 schools - Empowering farmers - Inclusive financial services

Disburses over a billion dollars in microloans annually

Augments microfinance with additional services like financial literacy training

- Self-sustaining solutions

EMPLOYEE TRAINING

POLICY ENGAGEMENT

EXTERNAL TRAINING

REFINING DEFINITION

Organizational Challenge

Organizational Overview

BRAC lacks a comprehensive, organization-wide disability policy.

INTERNAL

IMPLICATIONS

EXTERNAL

IMPLICATIONS

BRAC’s 100,000 employees do not receive adequate

accommodation in the workplace

The needs of people with disabilities

served by BRAC are not comprehensively

addressed

• People with disabilities are disproportionately affected by natural disasters.

• Families with children with disabilities have a harder time escaping poverty.

• People with disabilities often lack access to the healthcare and social services they need.

Disability is a cross-cutting development issue.

A Definition of Disability IMPAIRMENT PERSPECTIVE / MEDICAL MODEL: disability is seen as fixed in an individual’s body or mind, thus requiring an individual to change to fit their environment.

SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT / HUMAN RIGHTS MODEL: disability is seen in terms of the socioeconomic, cultural and political disadvantages resulting from an individual’s exclusion, thus requiring the environment to change to accommodate the individual.

1 2

The second definition fits BRAC’s

vision of “a world free from all forms of

exploitation and discrimination where

everyone has the opportunity to realize

their potential.”