Promoting the rights of Children with disabilities innocenti digest no

participate in valued activities with other children and 
thereby enhances their standing in the local commu-
nity. Sport has been found particularly useful in areas 
of conflict to prevent accidents caused by landmines 
by the creation of play-safe areas and by teaching all 
children how to avoid and identify mines, as well as 
to develop ways of promoting the inclusion of chil-
dren with disabilities in the local community.
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Promoting the Rights of Children with Disabilities
Innocenti Digest No. 13
Toy libraries can also provide an invaluable resource to 
children and families. In Serbia and in Montenegro, toy 
libraries have been set up in 20 towns with the sup-
port of Save the Children and UNICEF. These libraries 
are staffed by teachers, special education teachers 
and psychologists on a voluntary basis. Once a week 
creative workshops are run for the children, including 
drama, drawing and terracotta, as well as discussion 
groups during which parents and children can share 
their experiences.
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Entry into the education system offers another oppor-
tunity to identify impairments and provide appropriate 
support. In Fiji, the NGO Project Heaven carries out 
early detection of disabilities (visual and auditory im-
pairments) among all primary and secondary school 
students. The success of the project encouraged the 
Ministry of Education to integrate it as a regular fund-
ed activity of the Ministry.
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Many simple and creative initiatives to support 
children with disabilities do not require new 
infrastructure or investment, but can simply build 
on community strengths and pre-existing facilities. 
In Bangladesh, Handicap International and its 
local partners have worked to integrate a disability 
dimension into the work of community development 
organizations through its programme on Community 
Approaches to Handicap and Development. The