Objectives

The development work of DPOD aims to improve the opportunities of people with disabilities to achieve and practise their rights. This gives rise to defining a series of principles for the endeavour:

• The target group must be people in developing countries living with disability, i.e.  either they themselves or their closest relations have a disability
• The support must seek to obtain and secure rights for people with disabilities
• The support must ensure that people with disabilities are given priority in Danish and other development cooperation
• The work must target at both civil society and the government, while passing on the experiences to regional and international forums
• Maximum sustainability should be secured by building on established set-ups and resources, and by matching the efforts and the current social, cultural, economic and political context
• Focus should be on particularly marginalised groups, such as those with mental disorders, autism, learning/developmental or medical disabilities
• Focus should be on women with disabilities
• Focus should be on children and young people with disabilities, for instance by establishing associations exclusively for parents, or through support for groups of parents of disabled minors within existing organisations
• A component of service delivery may be relevant in certain projects, especially if this is utilised strategically to reach the poorest, thus ensuring that the advocacy carries meaning and relevance to the most vulnerable groups

The development work must always be based on national and international experiences, as well as the guidelines and specific recommendations set out in DPOD’s strategies for individual countries of cooperation.