68kpeople with disabilities supported to earn a living
21kpeople received vocational training
People with disabilities in poor communities often find it difficult to earn a living because they can’t access education or training, face prejudice and discrimination or cannot access resources or loans to get started.
CBM programmes improve access to employment, training and working rights for disabled people, providing training and support to help them get a job or start their own business.
Disability, livelihoods and unemployment
In every country in the world, people with disabilities have higher rates of unemployment than anyone else.
In some countries, the unemployment rate among people with disabilities is as high as 80%, putting them among the poorest 15 – 20% of the world’s population.
Excluding disabled people from the labour market is damaging for all of society, for example failing to include people with disabilities in Bangladesh was calculated to lead to an economic loss of US$234 million per year.
How we help
CBM helps people with disabilities to earn a living by:
Offering training in vocational and life skills;
Helping people with disabilities to build their confidence and see themselves as active members of their communities, through one-to-one support from trained outreach workers;
Providing start-up resources to help people set up businesses, such as small loans or equipment like a sewing machine or computer.
In action
Changing lives through livelihoods
When people with disabilities can build secure livelihoods, they can escape poverty, support their families and also…
“I never mind what people say about me anymore provided I get to where I want, because of the encouragement I received from Elim staff, who always go beyond people’s expectations.”
“I have always tried to help with the farming, but my abilities were not recognised in the family, or in the wider community… Now I have respect from them. They see me as a person, a successful person.”