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074 - Inclusive Vocational Education, LPHU, Lebanon
CONTACT
Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union
Ms. Sylvana Lakkis
Lebanon
+96 1 3 249 737
OVERALL GOAL /MISSION
The projects mission is to guarantee the right of women and men with disabilities to get access to inclusive vocational
education and training, which shall improve their economic and social wellbeing.
THE SOLUTION THAT HAS BEEN DEVELOPED
It is said that people with disabilities in Lebanon have a very low level of education that rarely reaches beyond a primary
school level. This lack of education causes a difficult situation on the labor market, which expresses itself in the fact that
they can hardly access the job market, even if they overcome physical obstacles and prejudices that often stop them
from leaving their homes. Vocational education and training is difficult to take advantage of because of an insufficient
access to it and those who attend it experience a high dropout rate that is linked to the inaccessible education
infrastructure and the lack of transportation possibilities. Nonetheless more than 50% of people with disabilities want to
take part in vocational trainings. In the first phase of the project the members conducted a market study and needs
assessment of persons with disabilities and the inclusion level of vocational institutions in Lebanon. From the beginning
on, the project wanted to remove barriers of inclusion on multiple levels, for example through awareness raising and
advocacy with decision makers or support for persons with disabilities and also their families. They therefore began to
build a referral system for vocational institutions considering the type of disability and readiness of them and developed
references and materials for vocational trainings. In the second phase the staff of the project provided technical support
and advice to the Directorate of Vocational Training at the Ministry of Education to establish inclusive procedures and
develop accessibility standards for vocational schools. They also started vocational trainings and capacity building for
people with disabilities that were affected by the war in Syria, where business marketing and management is
accompanied by individual and group psychosocial support for them and their families.