How Targeting Mechanisms Can Identify People With Disabilities for Inclusion in Social Protection Programmes

Persons with disabilities have worse education, health and employment outcomes and are more vulnerable to shocks than persons without disabilities. At the same time, they are less likely to be enrolled in social protection programmes, including those for which they are eligible. They can face significant barriers accessing information, getting to enrolment points, or even completing the necessary paperwork for enrolment. Acknowledging this, policy makers from low and middle-income countries and development agencies are seeking practical approaches to ensure that social protection systems are more inclusive of and shock-responsive for persons with disabilities.

The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that countries which have disability identification mechanisms and registries already in place have been in a better position to provide fast relief and expand shock responsive support to persons with disabilities and their families. This Guidance Note draws on experience from a range of these countries to provide examples of targeting mechanisms to identify and assess the needs of persons with disabilities for their inclusion in social protection programmes, and to describe the pros and cons.