United Nations
Disabled Persons Bulletin
Bulletin No 2 of 1999 Page 6/6 
Selected reference material produced by the United Nations
Given the recommendation of the World Programme of Action to develop systems for the
regular collection and dissemination of data and information on disability, the United
Nations Statistics Division is undertaking revisions and updating the disability
statistics database. This will present, in more user-friendly formats, data on disability
and a minimum set of indicators on the situation of persons with disabilities and those
without. As a first practical step, indicators are under preparation on the prevalence of
disability, within the ICIDH (1980) framework, and were scheduled for dissemination on the
Internet (http://www.un.org/Depts/unsd)55 before the end of 1999.
The Disability Statistics Database (DISTAT), version 2, which is currently being
prepared, includes data from over 100 countries, compared with 55 in the previous version,
and about 186 studies, more than double those in DISTAT, version 1. Given new developments
in database software, DISTAT 2 is a more flexible system than the previous version.
The next phase of work on DISTAT 2 will involve developing dissemination plans and data
checking. It was scheduled to begin in late 1999 once the Internet site was completed.
This work has been supported by SIDA and the United Nations Voluntary Fund on Disability,
and has been undertaken in cooperation with the Disability Unit of the Division for Social
Policy and Development.
Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing
Censuses: disability characteristics
As requested by the Statistical Commission at its twenty-eight session, the Principles
and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses Revision 1 discusses
statistics on people with disability56 and disability
characteristics57. A brief treatment of this topic is given
to the highlight issues involved in preparing detailed census tabulations on people with
disabilities.58
In many countries, the census is the only available source of information on frequency
and distribution of disability in the population at the national, regional and local
levels. Census results can provide baseline data and may be useful for investigating small
area variations in the prevalence of disabilities. Experience shows that although an
increasing number of countries ask questions about disability in the censuses, the
presentation of disability data has often been limited to tabulations showing the number
of specific severe disabilities present in the population. Unfortunately, cross
tabulations are not usually made.59
For the purpose of developing statistics on the situation of people with disability the
principal topics in census recommendations include (a) sex, (b) age, (c) place of
residence, (d) type of household, (e) marital status, (f) type of disability (including
multiple disabilities), (g) cause of disability, (h) educational attainment and
attendance, (i) activity status, (j) status of employment, (k) industry and (l)
occupation.60
The Principles and Recommendations also include a minimum set of impairment,
disability and handicap (IDH) tabulations that should be produced with census data on
prevalence of disability by sex, age, urban-rural residence and type of disability.
Priority also is to be accorded to presenting tabulations comparing persons with and
without disablement, with key social and economic characteristics. The set of IDH
tabulations is included in the year 2000 census principles and recommendations.61
Owing to the limited space available in the census, only one of the three dimensions
identified in the 1980 ICIDH -- impairment, disability and handicap (see section on ICDHI
in this issue) -- can be studied to monitor the situation of people with disability with
the other dimensions left to the household survey. Additional information on concepts,
classifications and methods for the development of statistics on people with disability is
contained in the Manual for Development of Statistical Information for Disability
Programmes and Policies.62
Manual for the Development of Statistical Information for
Disability Programmes and Policies63
The Manual for Development of Statistical Information for Disability Programmes and
Policies responds to the increasing demand for guidelines and comparable national and
international disability statistics. It is written specifically for the use of programme
managers and other concerned with the production and use of statistical information for
implementing, monitoring, and evaluating disability policies and programmes.
The Manual intends to define basic concepts such as impairment, disability and
handicap to promote progress in comparability and usefulness of information. It
specifically:
- Presents and discusses the major possible sources of existing data on disability,
considering also the aspect of their quality;
- Provides suggestions for the development of statistical information and for obtaining
and using it even in especially difficult situations, such as emergency and refugee relief
situations;
- Gives special attention to the major uses of statistical information on disability for
the purposes of programme and planning and evaluation.
Guidelines and principles for the development of impairment,
disability and handicap statistics
This publication, which is being prepared, is directed to statistical offices and
research organizations, and provides guidelines on the collection of impairment,
disability and handicap statistics in national censuses and surveys, and their analysis
and dissemination for policy purposes. Preparation of the handbook has been supported by
the Central Bureau of Statistics of the Netherlands, the Swedish International Development
Agency (SIDA) and the United Nations Voluntary Fund on Disability. The expected
publication date is mid-2000. The document complements the Manual for the Development
of Statistical Information for Disability Programmes and Policies, which is aimed at a
wider audience.
55 See A/52/351, paras. 44.
56 See Principles and Recommendations Chap. IX, Sect. C.4.
57 Ibid. Part Two, Chapter V
58 Ibid., para. 3.81.
59 Ibid., para. 3.80.
60 See Ibid., para. 3.82.
61 A/52/351 para. 43 (d).
62 See Principles and Recommendations, paras. 2.258-2.261
63 United Nations publication, Sales No. E.96.XVII.4.
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