| dc.description.abstract | Previous studies have shown that there is significance relationship between disability and poverty. Nepal being one of the poorest countries in the world we can expect large number of person with disability. In 2008, the Nepal Government revised its disability policy of 1994 into a disability card policy. In this policy, four different categories, based on severity, are recognized: Red card (profound disability), Blue card (Severe disability), Yellow card (Moderate Disability), and White card (Mild Disability). Card holders are entitled to monthly allowances and social benefits. Until now, there is limited information available about the local implementation and reception of the policy among persons with disability. The literatures found on disability in Nepal were limited to quantitative studies of numbers and distribution. It was identified that there is a knowledge gap of the life experiences of persons with disabilities, especially in rural Nepal. Thus, this study has two main goals: to explore the everyday experiences and challenges of persons with disability in rural Nepal, and second, to analyze the local implementation of the new disability card policy in the same area.
I ask: In what ways do the disability card policies respond to the needs of people with disability in rural Nepal? How the new policy is made available to the persons with disability? How do persons with disability gain information about the cards? In which ways do they take advantage of the cards? What characterizes the local processes of accessing cards and the following benefits? I argue that without understanding the local reception of the cards and the related policies there can never be proper implementation and benefit for those who were aimed for it.
The study was carried out in Eastern part of Nepal, more precisely in Okhaldhunga VDC of Okhaldhunga district in the Sagarmatha Zone. The main methods used to collect data were in depth interviews, participant observation and focus group discussions. The study was carried out for six months. In the field, 47 people with disability participated. Among them 20 were purposively selected for repeated in-depth interviews and participant observation and further nine among them were interviewed several times along with participant observation. However, the analysis of the study has led to the stories of seven persons with disability.
The findings in the study show that the economic improvement can improve social life. At the governmental institutional level the study shows a limited involvement of locals and particularly lack of consideration of the local context would be the main reasons for lack of a good implementation. Therefore, the findings suggest that the policy needs to take seriously the cultural and local setting and understand the needs of locally based people in order to be fully effective. Furthermore, studies on disability with nuanced analysis are required in field which will reflect the complex world of poverty and disability relations. | en_US |