Social Inclusion (audio)

Digital technologies have rapidly spread in much of the world. The number of internet users has more than tripled in a decade, and nearly 70 percent of the bottom fifth of the population in developing countries own a mobile phone. Despite this positive increase, digital divides remain in many countries: 60 percent of the world’s population is still off-line and therefore can’t fully participate in the digital economy, while many advanced economies are facing rising inequality and increasingly polarized labor markets due to the expanding automation. The World Development Report (WDR) 2016: Digital Dividends explores the impact of digital technologies on economic development, showing how these can promote inclusion, efficiency and innovation. It describes potential gains from new technologies but also issues related to digital dividends, risks, and policies that can help mitigate negative impacts. This webinar will feature a presentation by Deepak Mishra, Co-Director of the WDR 2016: Digital Dividends, who will talk about inequality and exclusion in access to digital technology, and the potential role of technology as a mechanism to promote social inclusion. The speaker will discuss how digital divides can be addressed to foster growth, job creation and better services, as well as reduce inequality and exclusion.

Exclusion based on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Gender Expression (SOGIE) exists in different forms across cultures, countries and regions. Homosexuality is punishable by death in some countries and illegal in many others, although it is common for lesbian, gay, or bisexual people to face social exclusion even where homosexuality is not illegal. Transgender or intersex people may not be homosexual at all, but are frequently classified as “gay” regardless. Social stigma driven by homophobia, transphobia, and discriminatory laws fuels the exclusion of LGBTI people, creating barriers to accessing markets, essential services, and spaces. Such social stigma also often precludes participation by LGBTI persons in social institutions and decision-making, and exposes them to violence. Social inclusion that is accepting of human diversity is key to sustainable development. As Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank Group stated, “LGBTI inclusion will help alleviate poverty and give everyone the respect, dignity they deserve.”

During this webinar, Chloe Schwenke will give an overview of SOGIE issues in development, share her experience with the design, implementation, and evaluation of LGBTI programs and policies, and highlight examples of successful initiatives from around the world that focus on LGBTI inclusion. Prof. Schwenke will discuss the role development could and should play to help address SOGIE-based exclusion, and how best we could forge a more inclusive society.

Building the evidence base for inclusion of indigenous peoples is a complex task. In different countries, and within them, indigenous peoples are described by different names: ethnic minorities, scheduled tribes, first peoples/nations, aboriginals, ethnic groups, Adivasi, hill people and others. There is no single definition. Estimates of the number of indigenous peoples worldwide also vary, from 300 to 370 million people.

At the micro level, there are many ethnographic and anthropological studies about individual indigenous groups. What is still needed, in order to get clearer understanding of development challenges faced by indigenous populations around the world, is systematic, comparable research on a global scope.

In the developing world, most research on indigenous peoples has focused on Latin America. However, widening the lens to capture the entire developing world reveals a stunning result - the largest share of indigenous peoples actually live outside of this region; and while there are some encouraging instances where indigenous peoples are beginning to close the development gap, the global indigenous population often remain among the poorest of the poor, and faces many common challenges.

During this webinar, Gillette Hall, the co-author of the first global study on indigenous populations and poverty, will recap some the research findings from the book Indigenous Peoples, Poverty and Development, and discuss holes in the research that are still needed to be addressed.

One billion people - 15% of the world’s population - live with some form of disability. They make up one of the largest excluded groups. Facing multiple barriers, persons with disabilities are more likely to be poor, less educated, discriminated against and unemployed.

To understand disability and design evidence-based and inclusive policies, governments and development organizations need reliable disability disaggregated data. However, multidimensional nature of disability makes measurement difficult. Data is patchy; where it is available, definitions and methodologies vary, making comparisons across countries problematic. Finding ways of collecting better data on persons with disabilities will help identify strategies to improve their well-being and implementing the SDGs.

In this webinar, Daniel Mont, an international expert on disability measurement and inclusive development, will discuss:

What are known data gaps on disability, and how they can be filled?

What are existing sources of data on disability?

What datasets could be analyzed from disability perspective?

How can we build and use evidence for more inclusive policy and development decisions?

The webinar will be moderated by Charlotte McClain-Nhlapo, Global Advisor on Disability of the World Bank Group.

How is social inclusion measured? How can one know when social inclusion is achieved? This podcast discusses data and approaches that can be used for measuring social inclusion.

Excluded people exist in all countries, making social inclusion a universal concern. It is relevant for developing countries and for developed economies. It is also an important element of the post-MDG development agenda.

For policy makers and development practitioners, understanding the underlying processes of exclusion and inclusion is an important step in diagnosing and addressing the problem.

This podcast is an introduction to fundamental concepts and processes related to social inclusion. It will provide answers to questions such as “What is social inclusion?” and “Who gets excluded and why?” The presenter will draw important distinctions between social exclusion and related concepts of inequality, poverty, and discrimination.

The session will use definitions, operating framework, and examples from the recent World Bank Group report “Inclusion Matters” and from other relevant publications on the subject.