Children with Special Education Needs in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan

After the disruption and poverty which followed the end of the Soviet Union, the countries of Central Asia have begun to make great strides both economically and socially. However, educational exclusion of disabled children is widespread, not only from mainstream schooling but also from quality education, and often from any education at all. There is still much progress to be made in the field of quality inclusive education for children with special needs due to disability, learning difficulty or disadvantage, as well as in terms of promoting social integration and decreasing stigma associated with disability.

To promote a better understanding of the potential of children with special education needs, the Open Society Education Support Program commissioned research from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to analyze existing services and policies for providing education to children with special education needs through the lens of disability, learning difficulty, and disadvantage.

This report provides a summary of the OECD research on education policies for Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, and Tajikistan.