Recent inclusive education policies and practices in the Republic of Moldova that have helped some 4,000 children with special educational needs to attend mainstream schools were reviewed in a meeting in Chisinau on February 23, organized by the UN Human Rights Office, UNICEF and the Moldovan Government, IPN reports.
“We welcome the chance to meet with parents and children and to hear their experiences with these new inclusive education policies. Open dialogue with civil society helps strengthen our ability to secure genuine inclusion for all children,” said Liliana Onofrei-Nicolaescu, Deputy Education Minister of Moldova.
Iulian Perciun, who has a child with disabilities, appreciated the opportunity to meet Ministry officials, educators and other members of the policy community, to discuss our experiences in working to overcome barriers to equal education for children with disabilities.
The meeting was the first Platform Discussion on the rights of children with special educational needs in education. It was the culmination of nearly a year of efforts by parents and children to create a network to strengthen solidarity and common advocacy in pushing for genuine inclusive education. The network currently has 80 families with children who have special needs.
In Moldova there are around 15,000 children with disabilities. The Government program for the development of inclusive education was adopted in 2011. Since then, the number of children with special educational needs in regular schools increased from 1,604 to 7,660. During the same period the number of children with disabilities in auxiliary and special schools decreased from 2,549 to 1,538.
