Finland's Development Cooperation on Disability Issues
During the follow-up period (1993-2000) two important bilateral projects were implemented: a programme on special education in Ethiopia, and a rehabilitation programme in Nicaragua. Long-lasting cooperation with University of Zambia in the field of special education continued. There were also other interventions, such as cooperation with UNESCO Special Needs Education Programme.
The Finnish NGOs channel about 12% of development cooperation funds to their partners’ programmes in the South. The Ministry disburses the funds in an annual grant application process. The current level of Finnish development cooperation funds (0.33% of the GDP) means that the total amount to NGOs is approximately 200 million FIM (33 million Euros) annually. The NGOs themselves pay a 20% self-finance share of the total cost of their projects. In the early 1990s, disability-related projects, were given a special position to pay only 10% self-finance. Justification for this was to encourage NGO projects in the field, as disabled people are seen as a vulnerable group among poorest of the poor.
The projects of Finnish NGOs mainly target education, health care and social work.
The number of disability-related NGO projects has increased in the 1990s, amounting now to a total value of 13 million FIM (2.18 million Euros). One reason for the increase may be, that the threshold to start such a project was lower because of the 10% self-financing.
The organisations implementing disability-related NGO projects can be divided in three groups:
1) organisations of disabled people,
2) religious associations (Church and missionary organisations), and
3) others (for example friendship-associations, sports associations)
The groups implement projects in following fields:
rehabilitation, services (2, 3)
education (special schools, particularly for the deaf) (1, 2, 3)
capacity building of local disability organisations (1)
employment, skills training (1, 2, 3)
The volume of the individual projects is usually modest, with the exception of some larger programmes including construction work, investments or maintenance.
The partners in the South follow the same structure as the organisations in Finland. Organisations of disabled people (DPOs) work mainly with their sister organisations, stressing the role of disabled people themselves as actors and advocators. Christian organisations have their traditional partners in the South. The third group has a variety of partners.
The input of KEPA (Service Centre for Development Cooperation) is difficult to estimate. KEPA is an umbrella organisation of Finnish NGOs in development cooperation sector, and in the nineties KEPA gave remarkable assistance to the disability sector collaborating with Finnish member organisations, providing development workers to disability sector in Zambia, Mozambique and Nicaragua.
In this study, different projects on disability has been collected. However, due to various actors in the field, there might be some details needing specification. All comments and feedback on the study are warmly welcome.
Further information
Finland's Development Cooperation on Disability Issues 1993-2000 (PDF)
http://global.finland.fi/v2/english/tietopankki/disability_study93_00.pdf
Finland's Bilateral and Multilateral Development Projects on Disability Issues 1993-2000 (PDF)
http://global.finland.fi/v2/english/tietopankki/disability_table2.pdf
Funds for Disability Issues 1993-2000, Finnish and International NGOs (PDF)
http://global.finland.fi/v2/english/tietopankki/disability_fig2.pdf
03.09.2001 | 
