Education
• Between 2016/17 and 2017/18, the greatest increase in the number of students with special educational needs was registered in secondary education (+15%).
• 57% of students with a Specific Individual Curriculum (CEI) or who attend a Specialized Unit spend less than 40% of the school time with the rest of the class.
• The ratio of students with special educational needs per specialized staff member (schools and Resource Centers for Inclusion) worsened since 2014/15: from 24 to 27 students per specialized human resource.
• In the 2017/18 school year, 181 students with special educational needs enrolled in higher education through the quota for students with disabilities, an increase of 28% from the previous school year.
• Only about half of higher education facilities provide adaptations and resources for students with disabilities, such as accessible buildings (56%), special regulations (56%), accessible websites (52%) and support services (46%).
Employment
• In 2016, the activity rate of persons with disabilities in Portugal was much lower than that of persons without a disability (66,7% and 85,7%, respectively).
• People with a severe disability report the lowest employment rates in Portugal (35,6%, contrasting with a 73,2% activity rate among persons without a disability).
• Registered unemployment decreased 19,3% between 2016-2017 in the general population, but only 2,0% among persons with disabilities. Between 2011 and 2017, it decreased 34,5% in the general population, but increased 24,0% among persons with disabilities.
• In 2017, the majority of persons with disabilities registered as unemployed were over 25 years old (86,8%), in search of a new job (81,6%) and unemployed for over one year (60,4%).
• Only 11% of persons with disabilities registered as unemployed were placed in a job in 2017, even if there was a 159% increase in the number of job placements between 2011 and 2017.
• Support for the adaptation of the workspace and removal of architectonic barriers was provided to only 6 beneficiaries in 2017. The number of people who received support for the acquisition of assistive devices through the Institute for Employment and Vocational Training (IEFP) decreased 32% since the previous year.
• 65,8% of persons with disabilities who benefited from general employment measures in 2017 were placed in social firms or “socially necessary work” (CEI and CEI+).
• In 2016, persons with disabilities represented only 0,51% of the work force of private companies with 10 or more workers. 71% of these workers had a moderate disability.
• The ratio of workers with disabilities in public administration is on the rise and reached 2,42% in 2017.
Life conditions and social protection
• The risk of poverty or social exclusion in Portugal is higher among persons with disabilities than among persons without a disability, both in 16-64 age group (+16 p.p.), and in the over 65 age group (+8,2 p.p.).
• The gap in the risk of poverty and social exclusion among persons with and without a disability is higher in Portugal than in the EU average (+15,7 p.p. in the 16-64 age group and +5,6 p .p. in the over 65 age group).
• The greatest risk of poverty or social exclusion is found in households with persons with severe disabilities (36,7%, +15,3 p.p. than in the households of persons without a disability and +6,4% than in the households of persons with moderate disabilities).
• The beneficiaries of all disability related benefits in Portugal are predominantly male. This difference is wider in family benefits, such as special education supports (+30 p.p.), supplement to the family allowance for children with disabilities (+24 p.p.) and constant attendance allowance (+16 p.p.).
This report was presented publicly on December 13, 2018 during the III ODDH Meeting – Disability, Decent Work and Citizenship. The aim of the Disability and Human Rights Observatory (ODDH) is to follow-up the development of disability policy in Portugal and Portuguese-speaking countries and to promote participatory processes of monitoring and promotion of disability rights.
Download full report (only available in Portuguese).