It is essential to appropriately identify the needs and requirements of persons with disabilities to make development and service delivery activities inclusive.
The Centre for Injury Prevention and Research, Bangladesh (CIPRB), an injury prevention and public health research institute, has opined that adequate research is necessary to specifically determine the types of disability and ensure the availability of services accordingly, reads a press statement.
Highlighting the 2025 theme, ‘Fostering disability inclusive societies for advancing social progress' CIPRB organized a seminar on Tuesday on how research and development projects can be made more inclusive.
The seminar was chaired by Prof. Dr. A K M Fazlur Rahman, Executive Director, CIPRB, with Professor Dr. M A Faiz, Retired Prof. (Medicine) and Former Director General, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Prof. Dr. Md. Mazharul Hoque, President, CIPRB and Anika Rahman Lipy, Assistant Director, Centre for Disability in Development (CDD), present as special guests.
Dr. Aminur Rahman, Deputy Executive Director of CIPRB, convened the seminar by providing an overview of the context of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, along with national and global situation.
Dr. Nawshin Torsha, Senior Research Associate, CIPRB, presented a brief of CIPRB's research-based recommendations, pilot project results, and plans on inclusive healthcare delivery.
The open discussion led to several recommendations, including training staff and community-level volunteers on disability inclusion, making information and communication materials disability-friendly, accessible infrastructural development, conducting awareness campaigns, and formulating institutional disability-friendly policies in line with national policies.
Anika Rahman Lipy, Assistant Director, CDD, discussed the strategies institutions could adopt when hiring staff to ensure disability inclusion. In her speech, she stated, "Special recruitment are to be ensured exclusively for persons with disabilities." She also recommended advocacy for adopting disability prevention activities.
Professor Dr. M A Faiz, Retired Professor (Medicine) and Former Director General, DGHS, stressed in his speech that "research must be conducted to ensure the accuracy of data related to disability." He advised CIPRB to research and analyse the pattern of injury-related disabilities. He also emphasised the importance of research on mismanagement of fever at the community level as one of the leading causes of disability.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mazharul Hoque, President, CIPRB, stated that there is a need to collaborate with social researchers to modernise and adapt the social determinants of disability. He emphasized the necessity of orienting the social researchers on disability inclusion.
Professor Dr. A K M Fazlur Rahman, Executive Director, CIPRB, concluded the seminar by pledging to re-evaluate policies, and take necessary measures to raise awareness to ensure disability inclusion across all activities of CIPRB.
