The year of 2014 is the starting year for the China Disabled Persons' Federation (CDPF) to study systematically the guiding principles of the 3rd and 4th Sessions of the Party's 18th National Congress, to thoroughly implement new tasks and missions related to the work on disability issues required by the central government, and to efficiently carry out plans by the 6th National Congress of Persons with Disabilities. With the past year, under the leadership of CPC and State Council, disabled persons' federation (DPFs) at all levels proactively worked with persons with disabilities (PWDs) and those working in the area of disability affairs and achieved a series of important progresses.
I. Rehabilitation
In 2014, through implementation of some key projects, 7.515 million PWDs received rehabilitation services at different levels.
By the end of 2014, the number of rehabilitation institutions reached 6914 in whole nation. Among them, 2622 are within the CDPF system. The number of employees working in those rehabilitation institutions reached 233,600, including 160,000 professionals, 30,500 in management and 43,100 others.
Community-based rehabilitation (CBR) was implemented in 914 city districts and 2,023 counties. 219,000 CBR centers were established, and 392,000 CBR coordinators were employed.
Screening for early-stage disability in children was initiated in 1,958 healthcare institutions in 1,662 counties. 48,000 children aged between 0-6 were diagnosed as disabled. With support from rehabilitation institutions at multiple levels, 1,547 parent schools were established, organizing 3,625 activities with 94,170 times of participation by parents of disabled children.
The number of rehabilitation institutions providing services for persons with visual impairment reached 891. 748,000 cases of cataract surges were conducted, including 300,000 free ones for those who can't pay for it. 142,000 low-vision patients received visual aids. 36,000 parents of children with low vision received training on more effective family-based rehabilitation practices. 123,000 blind persons received orientation and mobility trainings.
The management of hearing and speech training institutionswas more standardized, and the front service network became more comprehensive. 31 provincial-level institutions for hearing and verbal rehabilitation were established, and 1,025 more covering smaller administrative areas. 32,000 deaf children are currently receiving trainings, and 19,000 of them were enrolled last year. Parent schools were further regulated to improve service quality, and 39,000 parents were trained. 5,772 professionals in the field of hearing and speech training were trained. A “rescuing” rehabilitation project was implemented to provide 11,200 deaf children with free cochlear implants, and 19,600 ones with free hearing aids. The rehabilitation project for adults with hearing disabilities was also carried out and supported by the public welfare lottery fund. 38,352 financially struggling adults with hearing disability received free hearing aids, and 40,000 more received technical services from multiple levels of rehabilitation institutions.
The number of institutions providing rehabilitation and training services for persons with physical disability reached 2,181, including 42 provincial-level and another 2,139 at the city or county levels. Training for rehabilitation skills was provided for 35,000 physical rehabilitation professionals. Rehabilitationserviceswere carried out for 367,000 persons with physical disability nationwide. 40,000 children with cerebral palsy received rehabilitation services and 8,860 children with physical disability coming from poor families received corrective surgeries.
224 cases of corrective surgeries were conducted on persons with leprosy-derived disabilities. Advocation campaigns were carried out to build an inclusive society to support the mainstreaming of persons with leprosy-derived.
The number of institutions providing rehabilitation and training services to persons with intellectual disability reached 1,730, including 45 provincial-level rehabilitation institutions and 1,685 ones at the city or county levels. 15,000 mental rehabilitation professionals received rehabilitation skills training. Nationwide, rehabilitation training was conducted for 139,000 persons with intellectual disability. With the support of projects, 31,000 children with intellectual disability received rehabilitation training, so do their parents in how to perform family-based care.
A “socialized, comprehensive and open” model was promoted for the prevention and rehabilitation of psychiatric diseases. The work of prevention and rehabilitation was carried out in 2,664 cities and counties, covering 5.837 million persons with severe mental illness. 79.4% of the patients lived under guardianship, 66.2% showed obvious signs of recovery, 51.7% participated in societal activities, and 0.12% committed incidents with possible criminal charges. 4,123 persons with mental illness were deinstitutionalized, and 492,000 poor patients received medical assistance.
41 provincial-level autism rehabilitation institutions were established, and 20,000 children with autism were served.
The work on building a network for providing assistive devices was further strengthened, aiming at establishing a nationwide network. 6 regional centers were being fostered. 29 provincial-level institutions providing assistive devices were established, along with another 220 at the prefectural level and 945 at the county level. Professional trainings at multiple levels and in multiple forms were provided for 6,261 technical staff. The work of providing assistive devices was strengthened and a series of projects were implemented. A total of 1.524 million assistive devices, including 29,000 artificial limbs, 64,000 pieces of prosthetics and 178,000 visual assistive devices were provided for PDWs for free or on subsidized prices.
II. Education
In 2014, Special Education Advancement Program for 2014-2016 was launched, and the right to education for PWDs is better protected.
The education project funded by dedicated welfare lottery fund provided financial support to more than 11,000 disabled children from poor families for their preschool education. Funds were also raised through multiple channels to support 2,908 disabled children for the same cause.
Nationwide, there are 187 special education classes at senior high schools, with 7,227 students, among whom, 6,173 were deafand 1,054 wereblind. There were 197 medium-level vocational education schools for PWDs, with 11,671 current students, 7,240 graduates, and 5,532 with professional certificates. 7,864 students with disabilities were accepted in mainstream higher education institutions, and 1,678 disabled students entered special higher education institutions.
III. Employment
In 2014, the number of employed PWDs remained stabled. 278,000 PWDs in urban areas were newly employed, including 76,000 by PWD-concentrated institutions, 70,000 through a quota scheme, 12,000 by welfare job posts, 107,000 through self-employment and other forms of employment and 13,000 through employment for the purpose of rehabilitation, which means employment is another form to offer rehabilitation. This year, 4.36 million PWDs remained or were employed in urban areas. In rural areas, 17.236 million PWDs remained or were employed, and 13.604 million of them were in agricultural production businesses.
Nationwide, there were 6,154 vocational training institutions, including 2,211 established by DPFs and 3,943 by social organizations. A total of 382,000 person-time PWDs in the urban areas received vocational training.
Massage business by the blind grew steadily with a significant increase in the number of massage institutions. In 2014, 21,296 blind health masseurs and 5,623 blind medical masseurs were trained. The number of health massage institutions reached 15,609, and the number of medical massage institutions increased to 1018. Respectively, 494 and 1,229 masseurs passed the intermediate and elementary level professional qualification exams.
IV. Social Security
In 2014, the new rural social endowment insurance and urban social endowment insurance were combined. 21.8 million or 74.2% of PWDs in rural and urban areas participated in the endowment insurance. There are 4.05 million persons with severe disabilities are under the age of 60, including 3.792million receiving government's subsidies for the participation, covering 93.6% of them. Another 2.347 million persons whose disabilities were not that severe also enjoyed full-amount or partial subsidies for the endowment insurance participation. 8.586 million PWDs received pension benefits.
The number of urban workers with disabilities covered by both social endowment insurance and medical insurance maintained at around 2.8 million. 2.615 million urban PWDs and 8.441 million rural PWDs were covered by minimum living standard allowance. The number of urban PWDs served by concentrated foster care institutions and rural full-guaranteed PWDs reached 112,000 and 66,200 respectively. After passing the assessment of conditions, 4.55 million PWDs received regular living allowances and 2.79 million received nursing subsidies. Another 2.577 million urban and rural PWDs received other forms of assistance or economic aid.
Foster service for PWDs made steady progresses. The number of foster care institutions for PWDs increased to 5,917, which have together served 161,000 PWDs. Among the foster care institutions, 1,758 are boarding institutions, 2,132 are day-care institutions and 2,027 include both boarding and day-care services. Through these institutions, 15,933 PWDs obtained employment required to perform simpler tasks, and 3,503 PWDs obtained employment by having supporting staff helping them at the initial phase of their working. Another 771,000 PWDs received their foster care services at home. Throughout the year, 49,000 foster service managements and professionals received various levels and categories of training, and 882 of them received national-level training.
V. Poverty Alleviation
In 2014, 2.332 million PWDs in poverty were financially supported,including 1.199 million lifted themselves out of poverty through a series of poverty alleviation projects. Training on the application of technologies was provided for 726,000 person-time PWDs.
61,000 rural PWDs were granted subsidies on loan interest through rehabilitation projects. The number of poverty alleviation centers increased to 6,593, with a total of 124,000 PWDs under its employment, supporting 258,000 PWDs and their families. Among them, 43,000 were newly hired and 91,000 families were newly supported in the year.
850 million RMB were invested to benefit 103,000 PWDs of 90,000 poor rural households to have their houses renovated.
Through primary-level poverty alleviation projects, 95,403 PWDs living in rural areas received financial support, and 57,678 of them were first-time receivers. Another project called “Market Building in Ten Thousand Villages” helped 6,865 PWDs find their employment, which opened 1,990 village shops.
VI. Publicity and Cultural Activities
This year, 44 news reports on disability-related issues were aired on CCTV's Evening News, and 84 editorials, reports and reviews were published on People's Daily. The 11th National Exhibition of Disability-related Programs by Local Broadcasting Stations and the Contest of News on Disability-related Issues for the 2012-2013 Period were organized, during which 40 programs and 219news reports were awarded. By the end of 2014, at the provincial level, there were 17 radio programs on disability issues, 30 TV news programs displaying sign language, and 42 public educational advertisements were aired. At the district/city level, there were 241 radio programs broadcasting on disability issues, and 201 TV news programs with sign language and 366 public educational advertisements were aired.
Three “One Hundred” public interest events aiming for enriching the cultural lives of PWDs, “One Hundred Libraries,” “One Hundred Museums” and “One Hundred Medias” were held. Other events like “Culture Week for Persons with Disabilities,” “Integration into Communities: Culture of Persons with Disabilities” and “Construction of National Pilot Cities of Persons with Disabilities Cultural and Sports Activities” were also held. In the past year, five million PWDs went out of their homes to participate in various cultural activities, which enriched their lives and enhanced capacities. By the end of 2014, 1,616 reading rooms with Braille and audiblereading materials were established nationwide in provincial, city and county levels. During the year, 5,568 sub-events of “Persons with Disabilities Cultural Week” were held, and 2,806 cultural and art competitions and exhibitions were organized. There are 775 disabled persons' art organizations in the whole country.
VII. Sports
In the whole country, 719 national-level sports and fitness coaches were trained. 26 provinces (municipalities or autonomous regions) provided financial support to 150 demonstration sites of self-improvement fitness for PWDs. Eight sets of fitness devices were donated to middle and western China and were managed by the demonstration sites. Cumulatively, 397 self-improvement fitness demonstration sites were set up. In Beijing and Hebei Province, 1,000 households had joined the pilot Rehabilitation Sports Home Integration Project. A series of 14 events, including China's 8th “Day of Special Olympics,” Special Olympic Competition of Football Matches, and Forum of Parents were organized. The number of athletes for Special Olympics has reached 1.18 million.
At the national level, 20 sports matches were organized, participated by more than 6,000 PWDs. China participated 19 international sports games, including the Sochi Winter Paralympics, and the Incheon Asian Para Games. In the Sochi Winter Paralympics Games, China's wheelchair curling team won the 4th, which was a historical breakthrough. At the Incheon Asian Para Games, Chinese delegation won 317 medals, and 174 of them are gold, ranking 1st for the 8th consecutive time. Five major international sports games were held, including the 8th ITTF Wheelchair Table Tennis World Champaign, IPC Beijing Athletics Open, and the Asian Goalball Tournament were held in training bases of PWDs. The games were participated by 58 foreign teams and more than 1,000 athletes. 39 training sessions for PWDs were organized for a total of 607 person-time athletes in the whole country. The number of registered athletes reached 9,354, with 1,188 qualified judges and 36 classifiers. The number of country-level bases of sports for PWDs reached 34.
The promotion of PWDs' sports and fitness activities was also extensively carried out at the provincial levels. 241 fitness events were organized for PWDs, with 62,000 persons participating. 839 sports activity demonstration sties of PWDs were established, training 11,000 fitness coaches for PWDs. 151 sports competitions of PWDs were organized, with 23,000 persons participating. The number of provincial sports training bases of PWDs amounted to 234. At the city level, 5,544 sports events of PWDs were organized, with 694,000 persons participating. 1,930 sports activity of PWDs demonstration sites at the city level were established, training 18,000 fitness coaches for PWDs.
VIII. Rights Protection
One local implementation guidelines for the Protection of Persons with Disabilities Law was amended. Eight provincial and ten city-level disability-specific regulations were established or amended. 22 provincial, 71 city-level and 334 county-level regulations on the protection of PWDs' rights were established or amended. People's Congress at and above the county level carried out inspections on the enforcement of the Protection of Persons with Disabilities Law for 649 times. The Political Consultative Conferences at all levels carried out inspections and studies for 635 times. 6,510 times of promotion and education events for the law were held, with 933,000 participating. 1,511 education sessions for legal professionals were organized for 92,000 participants.
By the end of 2014, 1,521 coordination organizations of legal assistance for PWDs were established, with 1,348 of them legal assistance stations, handed 4,666 cases of rights violations against PWDs last year. 3001 legal aid stations were established, handing 18,000 cases of rights violations against PWDs last year. The work of legal assistance services for PWDs was greatly promoted.
PWDs took more active parts in political affairs. In 2014, 1,538 bills and proposals were raised by the People's Congress deputies and members of political consultative conferences from DPF systems. 1,374 pieces of bills and proposals were brought up.
Legislation and standards of accessibility were further improved. 451 regulations, rules and guidelines on accessibility were issued. 1,506 cities, counties and districts initiated the construction of accessibility facilities. 4,906 inspections on accessibility were carried out. More than 40,000 persons received relevant trainings. Renovation of houses to increase accessibility was made for 149,000 poor families with PWDs. 679,000 PWDs received subsidies on gasoline used by motorized wheelchairs.
The DPFs at all levels received and handled 48,000 compliant letters, and reception for 286,000 visitors were made. Among the complaint visits, 1,194 are group visits and 19,000 by individuals.
IX. Organizational Development
By the end of 2014, 32 provincial-level DPFs (inducing the DPF of Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps) had disabled persons as presidents or vice presidents. 246 city-level federations had disabled presidents or vice presidents in their offices. 1,631 county-level federations had disabled staffs in their offices. 40,000 towns (streets) had DPFs, accounting for 98% of the total ought-to-be established offices, recruiting 47,000 disability commissioners. 590,000 communities (villages) had disabled persons' associations, accounting for 93.8% of the ought-to-be established associations, recruiting 561,000 disability commissioners.
The number of workers in the city, county and township level DPFs increased to 115,000 persons. 33,000 training sessions were organized for 703,000 persons.
Nationwide, there are 15,633 special associations of PWDs of different disabilities. 100% provinces, 99.1% cities, and 92.9% counties had established their special associations of PWDs. 2,972 civil organizations as siting PWDs were established nationwide, among them, 1,581 are registered with the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and 1395 are under the management of respective levels of DPFs.
X. Service Facilities for PWDs
The construction of service facilities was developed in a comprehensive way. By the end of 2014, 2,231 full-service facilities at multiple levels were completed and out into use, totaling 4.6026 million square meters of servicing area. The total investment amounted to 12.864 billion RMB. 613 rehabilitation facilities were completed, totaling 1.3001 million square meters of servicing area. The total investment amounted to 4.038 billion RMB. 442 nursing institutions are currently in use, totaling 1.0139 million square meters, and 2.571 billion RMB were invested.
XI. Informationization
In 2014, the official website of CDPF made the information about more than 60 preferential treatments for PWDs easily accessible online. The website recorded 75.1 million visits by 6.6 unique visitors. The China Disabled Persons' Service Network recorded 1.5 million visits, with nearly 40,000 registered users. We have provided 1.26 million services to help visually impaired persons to pass the verification process while they were surfing the Internet. By the end of 2014, we provided support for 22,000 PWDs applying for jobs, providing information on more than 31,000 openings that are PWD-related, and 22,000 openings in private companies.
By the end of 2014, 33 DPFs at the provincial level (including the DPFs of Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps and Heilongjiang Agricultural Reclamation Department), 280 DPFs at the city level and 1,347 DPFs at the county level have their own websites, which is 43 more compared with last year. The websites of 38 DPFs of provinces and cities with independent budgetary status were tested and evaluated. Annual accessibility evaluation was conducted for 118 websites of ministries and of provincial governments. Results of the evaluation provided the ground to improve our future work.
By December 31st, 2014, the National Basic Database of Disabled Population recorded 29.47 million PWDs holding certificates for disability. Based on data from the Basic Database of Disabled Population, CDPF and more than 20 provincial-level DPFs are constructing the information systems for key services to guard the efficient implementation of PWD-related policies and services.