Expert Group Meeting to Review the United Nations

Expert Group Meeting to Review the United Nations Demographic Yearbook System 10 -14 November 2003 New York Collection and dissemination of statistics on disability at the United Nations Statistics Division Proposals for the future Demographic and Social Statistics Branch United Nations Statistics Division 1

Introduction • Why collect international disability statistics through the Demographic Yearbook system ? • Review of past and current activities at the United Nations Statistics Division with regard to disability statistics • Proposal of integration of disability statistics into Demographic Yearbook collection and dissemination system 2

Why collect international disability statistics? 1. World Programme of Action concerning disabled persons (1982) called for collection on continuous basis 2. Current work on improving measures towards comparability (Washington group on Disability Statistics) 3. Increased international and national demand for disability statistics 4. Growing number of countries are collecting disability statistics through censuses and surveys 3

Why collect international disability statistics through Demographic Yearbook system ? (Cont. ) 5. International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) a new conceptual framework to collect disability statistics 6. The 34 th United Nations Statistical Commission (2003) approved on collection of disability statistics on regular basis through the Demographic Yearbook 7. The Demographic Yearbook system is versatile and capable of collecting disability statistics 4

Disability data collection activities at the United Nations Statistics Division 1. Development of statistics of disabled persons: Case studies 2. United Nations Disability Statistics Database 1 and the Disability Statistics Compendium 3. United Nations Disability Statistics Database 2 4. Data collection and dissemination through the Demographic Yearbook on Population Ageing (1993) 5

Disability data collection activities at the United Nations Statistics Division (Cont. ) • The collection of disability statistics at the United Nations Statistics Division has been on an ad hoc basis • Low international comparability; prevalence rates for persons with disabilities vary among countries, e. g. between 0. 2% and 20% 6

Collection of disability statistics through the Demographic Yearbook system would: • Regularize the collection • Make disability statistics part of the Demographic Yearbook database • Improve dissemination of data by making them available worldwide 7

Proposed information to be collected Quantitative data • Persons with disabilities by age, sex and urban/rural residence • Persons with disabilities 5 to 29 years by school attendance, age and sex • Persons with disabilities 15 years and over by usual (or current) activity status, age and sex Metadata • Methodological information and questions used 8

Proposed ways of collecting information through Demographic Yearbook system Proposal 1: Part of existing questionnaires Proposal 2: Stand-alone questionnaire 9

Discussion points • Number and type of key variables to collect from countries for data collection • Frequency of the data collection exercise • How best to get high response rates from countries • The best way for national statistical offices to coordinate their collection of disability data 10