This project will produce evidence and learning to support the inclusion of disabled people in the Covid-19 response. In-depth interviews in two countries – across a range of impairments, age groups and contexts – will examine people with disabilities’ experiences and their ideas for solutions to the challenges they are facing. Additional interviews will be conducted with key stakeholders in each country, as well as at international level.
The emphasis will be the rapid generation of data to understand the needs of disabled people, and how the Covid-19 response can be tailored to ensure their inclusion in responses is supported by FCDO and other agencies. The in-depth interviews with participants in the first phase of the study will be repeated 6-9 months later in order to consider the ongoing impacts of the pandemic, and how disabled people can be effectively included in recovery efforts. The grant will support work in Bangladesh and Ghana but comparable work is also underway in India, Uganda, UK and Zambia.