225 schools in Uzbekistan will open for children with disabilities

From the new school year, 225 secondary schools in all regions of the country will open their doors for children with disabilities. The representative office of the United Nations Children's fund (UNICEF) in Tashkent called this an unprecedented step in the history of the country.

This is done in accordance with the concept of the development of inclusive education in the public education system for 2020-2025, approved by the Presidential Decree of October 13, 2020 No. 4860.

“We welcome this progressive step towards inclusive education across the country. Evidence suggests that inclusive education is beneficial for all children and provides great opportunities in improving educational outcomes,” said Munir Mamedzade, head of Unicef's office in Uzbekistan.

It is noted that children with disabilities in Uzbekistan are often trained in separate institutions. In 2020, such children accounted for 75% of those raised in special institutions. Children with approximately 9,700 disabilities are not in the school system.

International practice has shown that the introduction of inclusive education is the key to improving the quality of Education. Inclusive education provides better learning outcomes for all children through child-oriented (not educational programs) and the application of pedagogy that meets the needs of each child, including children with disabilities.