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“85% of purpose led companies are showing a positive growth and 42% on non-purpose led companies are showing drop in revenue” Global Purpose Index, Imperative

The Challenge

Children with disabilities continue to be the most excluded from education. About 10,000 children with disabilities and special needs in Bulgaria are estimated to be out of school. Latest data from MoES for 2019/2020 shows that the total number of children with disabilities and special needs in kindergartens and schools are over 25,000. Almost 15,000 of those children are with multiple disabilities, cerebral palsy, sensory difficulties, autistic spectrum disorder, and they experience difficulties in verbal communication.

In a standard learning environment, collaboration and coordination between the family and the professionals supporting the child (resource teachers, psychologists, speech therapists, etc.) is challenging. In addition, teachers have insufficient training to work with children with disabilities in mainstream settings. The COVID-19 pandemic has made the situation even more challenging!

The Solution

In 2020 UNICEF in Bulgaria is joining efforts with partners for more accessible and comprehensive education for children with special needs.

Fundraising and programmatic area 1.1: UNICEF, together with its partners, will develop the country’s first inclusive digital education platform. It will provide adapted educational resources for the specific needs of every child and will facilitate the interaction between specialists, teachers, parents and children, especially for those living in remote areas, far from the district city, where there is no regular contact. Find more here.

Fundraising and programmatic area 1.2: To help non-verbal children express themselves we need assistive technologies (AT) for augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). They can vary from books and pens facilitating communication to complicated speech synthesis devices. UNICEF, together with its partners, aims at the gradual introduction and use of assistive technologies for augmentative and alternative communication in Bulgaria’s kindergartens and schools so that all children can learn and communicate with their peers. Find more here.

UNICEF is the United Nations Children’s Fund that operates in 190 countries and territories. We save children’s lives. We stand up for their rights. We help them fulfill their potential. And we never give up. Because we are UNICEF – for every child!