Additional Context: This information comes from a report produced by Inclusive Development Partners, or IDP, a research and technical assistance organization. Using a mixed-methods design under IRB approval from the University of Massachusetts Boston, the study triangulated a global survey of staff from 82 projects across 80 implementing organizations with key informant interviews and focus group discussions across eight countries where IDP had existing programs: Bangladesh, El Salvador, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Nepal, Nigeria, and Pakistan. Data collection took place between January and March 2026.

According to IDP, the costs and responsibilities previously covered by programming were transferred directly to families. Government respondents corroborated this shift, acknowledging that the financial burden was increasingly borne by parents and caregivers of children with disabilities, particularly mothers living in low-income households.

Source: Inclusive Development Partners