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, within families, the responsibility to provide for their child with a disability has fallen disproportionately on mothers, reflecting international gender patterns in which women assume the primary caregiving responsibility when formal support systems are removed. In the absence of community-based supports, therapy, school, and peer networks, mothers have become the primary providers of support that was previously delivered by trained program staff.

Source: Inclusive Development Partners