Review of Training for the Inclusion of People with Disabilities and Older People in the Humanitarian Sector

We have worked with HelpAge International to commission an overview of current training available for the humanitarian sector on the inclusion of people with disabilities and older people.

The review, authored by Frances Hill, Jim Cranshaw and Carys Hughes, will help lay the groundwork for our work on the inclusion of people with disabilities and older people. The report builds understanding on (i) the potential for innovation to improve outcomes from training, and (ii) training as a potential area for innovations on the inclusion of people with disability and older people, to be adopted by humanitarian actors.

Although not comprehensive, the review provides an insight into the trainings that are currently available;  which of these are felt to be most impactful, and what gaps exist in terms of training. Drawing on more than 40 resources, the review identifies many sector-wide challenges to impactful training for humanitarian actors on the inclusion of people with disabilities and older people. Ultimately, the following recommendations are made:

• Donors should provide more resources on top of programmatic funding for inclusion initiatives
• Develop a community of practice across organisations to share learning and resources
• Create a one stop shop for inclusion trainings, resources and guidance
• Provide more resources at a local level in local languages
• Drive greater awareness for inclusive organisations around disaster risk reduction practice
• Assess the reality of how, and during what phases, the Humanitarian Inclusion Standards can be operationalised
• Develop understanding and give more emphasis to older people‘s specific requirements
• Undertake more research around the role of caregivers
• Involve older people and people with disabilities more in the design and facilitation of training to make it more transformative
• Follow up on trainings with change processes within organisations

Read the review to find out more.