On Thursday, January 18, the Federal Cabinet has approved the second participation statement concerning the situation involving individuals with impairments. As Chairperson of the Scientific Advisory Board, Prof. Dr. Elisabeth Wacker, a full professor for the Chair of Diversity Sociology, has accompanied and also helped to form essential aspects of this.
"We of the Scientific Advisory Board have once again intensely participated beyond the professional borders and also transnationally - for instance regarding the connection with the UN convention on the rights of the handicapped," explains Prof. Wacker.
Prof. Wacker: Changes with regard to data collection, now pay off
The report makes it clear that the development of participation does not proceed uniformly in all areas of life. "Aside from recognizable progress, there also continues to be a need to catch up in important areas of life. Participation reports are at the same time a challenge and an orientation for both politics and society. They indicate the need for action in the future - for both politics and civil society," explains the Federal Chancellor for Labor and Social Affairs, Andrea Nahles.
Prof. Wacker also summarizes that, "in spite of all success, many wishes still remain open, especially in the field of data collection. For the last report, we had carried out dramatic changes here which are now beginning to pay off. The alliance will make great efforts during the coming years to further improve the data situation and to also thereby provide suggestions for developing the concepts of the advisory board."
Representative questioning for improvement of the data basis
Thus, a broadly-derived representative questioning was begun from the end of 2016. Still until 2021, the people with impairments are questioned for the first time about their situation: How would they like to live according to their own appraisal? Where would they like to live? And where do they encounter barriers? "The first results from this will thereby be able to flow into the next participation report - and be a stimulus to us to make headway even further with the subject of inclusion," forecasts Federal Chancellor Nahles.
The now published, second participation report is based for the most part on data from the years from 2005 to 2014. The number of people with impairments in Germany has risen from 10.99 million (in 2005) to 12.77 million (in 2013). A development which is due primarily to demographic changes. After all, impairments are seen to be more prevalent with an increasing age. People with impairments are those people who have valid, approved impediments or chronic illnesses.
Model care of children: Inclusion is a lived practice
The Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs considers it to be positive that more and more children in a pre-school age are cared for together by qualified personnel. Thus, that portion of children who are cared for inclusively has risen from 81 percent (2008) to 91 percent (2015). Inclusion is already a lived practice here. At the same time, the rate of unemployment of people with impairments has sunk during the last years, while their level of employment, in contrast, has risen. Nearly 1.2 million employees or those equivalent to such were occupied in 2014.
Another progress is that clearly more people live under outpatient care in their own home. Since 2008, the number has even doubled - up to about 160,000 in 2014. However, more students with special educational needs are still not being educated at special pedagogical schools, but rather in schools for children with learning disabilities - 66 percent in 2014. And many of these students still do not complete their graduation - 71 percent in 2014. Other needs for action also exist according to the appraisal by the ministry, for example, with an offer of a means of transportation without barriers, living spaces without barriers and leisure activities without barriers.
Comments by the Scientific Advisory Board
In addition to the presentation of the facts, published reports from the Scientific Advisory Board provide an insight into current, scientific discourses and formulate expectations for the inclusion policy in the federal and state governments. "I find this to be a very nice and proven format that we, as a Scientific Advisory Board, actively shape the report with our unaltered, published comments," says Wacker.
In addition, two key issues are dealt with and handled in detail by the Advisory Board. "We have focused this time on immigration and homelessness in people with disabilities." Two highly contemporary social themes," says Wacker. The processing of both topics presented itself as a special challenge, because hardly reliable data are available so far, particularly on groups of people with several disadvantages.
The Federal Government prepares a report on the situation of people with disabilities in Germany every four years. For this purpose, data on their living situation and the development status of their participation are evaluated. This complies with the reporting requirements laid down in the Social Security Code and in the UN Convention on the Rights for persons with disabilities.