Bhutan
Country Profile: Bhutan
| Human development index (for 2005) | |
| Human development index rank | 133 (UNDP 2007) |
| GDP per capital (PPP) | $1 969 (UNDP 2006) |
| Life Expectancy at birth (years) | 64.7 (UNDP 2007) |
| Combined gross enrolment ratio for primary, secondary and tertiary education | Not available (UNDP 2007) |
| Demography | |
| Total population mid-2007 | 658 000 (United Nations 2006) |
| Population of persons with disabilities | 75 200* |
| Proportion of persons with disabilities to total population | Estimated 3.5 per cent (ESCAP 2004c, Q 19) |
| definition of disability | Definition used in the Disability Welfare Act 2001 (ESCAP 2006, Q 19) |
| definition of persons with disabilities | Not available (ESCAP 2004c, Q 20) |
| Employment rate of persons with disabilities | Not available |
| Access to education | Not available |
| Institutional framework | |
| National coordination mechanism or disability focal point | National Coordination Committee on Disability, established in 1999, under the Department of Public Health, Ministry of Health (ESCAP 2004c, Q 1-b) |
| Number of members and composition of the mechanism | A total of 15 members from all relevant sectors (ESCAP 2004c, Q 1-b) |
| Legislative and policy framework | |
| Mention on disability in constitution | “The State shall endeavour to provide legal aid to secure justice, which shall not be denied to any person by reason of economic or other disabilities.”(Bhutan 2008a, art. 9, para. 6) “The State shall endeavour to provide security in the event of … disability ...” (Bhutan 2008a, art. 9, para. 22) |
| comprehensive disability law | Not available (ESCAP 2004c, Q 10-b) |
| Disabilitiy-specific anti discrimination law | Not available (ESCAP 2004c, Q 11-b) |
| Sectoral disbility laws | Cover: education; rehabilitation; health; building code; social security and social welfare (ESCAP 2004c, Q 9-a) |
| National plan of action on disability | The Tenth Five Year Plan for national development incorporates the concerns of persons with disabilities (Bhutan 2008b). |
| National efforts to promote an Inclusive Society | |
| Employment quota scheme | Not available (ESCAP 2004c, Q 30-a) |
| National accessibility standard | Bhutan Building Rules 2002 (Bhutan 2002, art. 8) |
| Standardized sign language | Yes (ESCAP 2004c, Q 34) |
| ICT accessibility guideline | Not available (ESCAP 2004c, Q 34) |
| Financial commitment | |
| Proportion of disability (social) spending to GDP or entire national budget | Not available |
| Annual budget allocated to the national coordination mechanism | Not available (ESCAP 2004c, Q 1-b) |
| Commitment to regional and international instruments on disability | |
| Signatory to the Proclamation of the Decade | 1995 (ESCAP 2004b) |
| Ratification of ILO Convention159 | No (ILO 2009) |
| Ratification or signatiory of the conventions on the Rights of Person with Disabilities, and its Optional Protocol | No (United Nations 2009) |
| * Estimated by the ESCAP secretariat according to the available data. | |
Source: http://www.unescap.org/ESID/psis/disability/publications/glance/Disability_at_a_Glance2009.pdf
