Democracy, Country Development, and Education of the Vulnerable: How States Adopt International Children and Disability Policies

• In Event: Roundtable Session 36
  In Roundtable Session: International Perspectives on Student Health, Disability, and Inclusion

Abstract

Concurring with the launching of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, which target the protection of the vulnerable, this study analyzes state behavior regarding ratification patterns of the Conventions for the Rights of the Child and the Persons with Disabilities. This analysis looks at the statistical relationships between country development and democratization on one hand, and country signature and ratification on the other hand. Education is part of the development index, extensively targeted in the two conventions, but also influenced by democracy. The study finds statistically significant relationships between child and disability rights adoption and these variables: freedom of expression and fair elections; political stability and absence of violence; rule of law; private sector policy; and the Human Development Index.

Author

• Gabriela Walker, University of South Dakota