Photo Credit: Alexandre Bonneau-Afroto/ALIMA
Community-Based Rehabilitation for Children with Disabilities in Uganda
Country: Uganda
Amount: $500,000
Duration: 2 years
Problem
Children with disabilities (CWDs) in Uganda often face extreme stigma and lack access to basic services. In western Uganda alone, there are an estimated 41,000 children with moderate to severe disabilities. Many communities mistakenly view disability as an “untreatable curse”. This stigma leads to children being hidden away at home, denied education, and socially isolated. Their families, especially mothers, also suffer from social exclusion and emotional distress.
Due to limited resources and awareness, rehabilitation services (like physical therapy, assistive devices, or special education) barely reach rural areas. Families often have to travel long distances to a hospital for help, which is costly or impossible for poor households. Without early intervention, children’s conditions can worsen or secondary health issues arise. The human suffering is immense: these children endure preventable physical pain and developmental delays, and their families struggle alone without support or respite.
Approach
Holistic Community-Based Program: Our funding supports KCDC (Kyaninga Child Development Center), a Ugandan nonprofit that has developed a community-based rehabilitation model following WHO (World Health Organization) guidelines. The model brings together healthcare, education, and social support to improve the lives of children with disabilities and their families, right in their communities. Key elements include:
Therapy and Medical Care: Mobile rehabilitation teams visit local health centers on scheduled days to provide services like physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and basic medical care to children with disabilities. This spares families the burden of traveling to far-off hospitals. KCDC has already partnered with 25 local health centers over the past 9 years, seeing around 1,000 children per month for therapy and check-ups.
Training for Teachers and Caregivers: The program trains community members – especially school teachers and volunteer caregivers – in techniques to work with disabled children. For example, teachers learn how to include children with disabilities in classes and do simple exercises with them, while parents are taught daily caregiving and stimulation activities to do at home. This builds local capacity so that progress continues between the visits of the rehab team.
Social Inclusion: The initiative also runs community sensitization sessions to combat stigma. By involving local leaders and success stories (like children who improved and joined school), it gradually changes attitudes, showing that these children can learn and participate if given support. It also establishes parent support groups so families can share experiences and reduce their isolation.
Expansion Plan: With the WAM Foundation grant, KCDC will be able to extend its services to 1,500 additional children with disabilities in new communities and provide assistance to 500 more families identified as highly vulnerable. Expansion involves recruiting and training more community health workers and therapists, equipping additional health centers with basic rehab equipment, and deepening partnerships with local schools. By the end of the grant, the goal is to firmly embed this model in the targeted districts, demonstrating that a comprehensive rehabilitation program can be run at the community level.
Path to Scale
Over the past 9 years, KCDC has reached 25 local health centers, seeing 1,000 children monthly.
Through steady community growth and ownership of the program, it aims to further influence policy for the standard of care for CWDs.
Why we think the grant is cost-effective
The program minimizes facility-related expenses by providing therapy services through outpatient services and community outreach.
By using local materials and resources, and partnering with local health centers, the initiative reduces operational costs while maintaining service quality.