Disability and Development Partners

Disability and Development Partners (DDP) is a United Kingdom charitable company limited by guarantee that supports disability-inclusive development through local partner organizations in South Asia and Africa. It was founded in 1992 under the name Jaipur Limb Campaign and was registered as a UK charity in London in 1995. The original name reflected its early focus on access to appropriate prosthetic and rehabilitation services, particularly for amputees affected by landmines and civil conflicts. In 2005, the organization adopted the name Disability and Development Partners as its work expanded beyond limb fitting and rehabilitation to address disability in a broader development and human-rights context. DDP's approach links disability with poverty and social exclusion. Rather than generally delivering projects as a direct implementing agency, it raises funds in the United Kingdom and channels support to local organizations. Its program model combines physical rehabilitation with income generation, education, social inclusion, organizational capacity-building, research, and advocacy. The organization has worked through partnerships in multiple countries, including India, Bangladesh, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Angola, Cape Verde, Nepal, and Burundi. A significant area of DDP's work has been the development of rehabilitation capacity. It helped establish or support rehabilitation centers in Mozambique, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, and India, providing prosthetic, orthotic, and therapy services. In India, its partnership with Mobility India supported technical development, professional training, community-based rehabilitation, and the construction of an accessible headquarters containing workshops, production facilities, a Jaipur foot unit operated by disabled women, training space, and student accommodation. DDP also supported formal training for people from partner organizations in orthotics, prosthetics, and rehabilitation therapy, enabling them to return to their home countries and strengthen local services. The organization has also supported practical innovations in rehabilitation technology. Working with Mobility India, it contributed to the development and dissemination of prefabricated calliper components and ankle joints intended to speed the delivery of services. These components were subsequently distributed more widely in India and in other countries affected by polio. DDP's programs have additionally included livelihoods initiatives for disabled adults and for parents and family members of disabled children, as well as inclusive-education projects benefiting disabled and other marginalized children. Human rights and participation have been central to the organization's partnerships. DDP supported campaigns in Mozambique, Angola, Nepal, India, and Ethiopia aimed at improving the inclusion of disabled people in public services and decision-making. In Nepal, a partner organization pursued legal action before the Supreme Court to protect disabled children and young people's right to free education. DDP also supported the creation of Nepal's first drop-in center for people with mental illness and their families, including assistance for women who had been pushed into destitution because of mental illness. DDP has used research to identify gaps in public policy and develop subsequent programs. Its work in Mozambique examined the exclusion of disabled people from HIV and AIDS prevention, treatment, awareness, and policy initiatives. A later participatory study in Burundi examined the education and communication needs of deaf children, their families, schools, associations, and government representatives. The findings helped attract support for a deaf school and for pupils seeking to continue into mainstream secondary education, an important issue in a country with no secondary schools specifically for deaf students. The organization was also involved in international disability-development knowledge exchange. DDP was part of the core group that contributed to the World Health Organization's Community-Based Rehabilitation guidelines published in 2011. Its wider capacity-building work included support for Aurora Deaf Aid Africa, a UK-based diaspora organization of deaf people. Through these activities, DDP's role has combined grant-making, partnership development, technical support, advocacy, research, and public awareness rather than operating as a conventional commercial brand.

Disability and Development Partners began in 1992 as the Jaipur Limb Campaign, a UK initiative shaped by the need for suitable prosthetic and rehabilitation services for amputees, including people affected by landmines and civil wars. The name referred to the Jaipur foot, an Indian-made prosthetic foot that became associated with affordable and locally appropriate rehabilitation. The organization was formally registered as a UK charity in London in 1995. During its early period, the charity combined fundraising with campaigning. It became a founding member of the UK Working Group on Landmines, the British arm of the broader International Campaign to Ban Landmines. This connected its rehabilitation concerns with international efforts to prevent the injuries and long-term social consequences caused by landmines. Over time, however, its activities moved beyond the needs of amputees and beyond prosthetic services alone. The organization changed its name to Disability and Development Partners in 2005. The new name reflected a broader understanding of disability as a development, poverty, equality, and human-rights issue. DDP increasingly worked through local organizations rather than presenting itself as a direct operator of development programs. It raised funds in the United Kingdom and supported partner projects in countries across South Asia and Africa. A major strand of its work involved strengthening rehabilitation systems. DDP helped establish four rehabilitation centers in Mozambique, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, and India, with services including prosthetics, orthotics, and rehabilitation therapy. Its long-running relationship with Mobility India supported the partner's technical programs, professional training, community-based rehabilitation work, and accessible facilities. The partnership also supported a production unit for Jaipur feet operated by disabled women and training infrastructure for rehabilitation professionals. DDP placed substantial emphasis on transferring knowledge and skills. More than fifty people associated with partner organizations in several countries received formal training in orthotics, prosthetics, or rehabilitation therapy, allowing them to return to their own services and improve local provision. In collaboration with Mobility India, DDP also supported the development and wider dissemination of prefabricated calliper components and ankle joints. These technologies were intended to make rehabilitation devices faster and easier to provide, particularly in settings where polio and other disabling conditions had created significant unmet need. The organization's development work expanded into livelihoods and education. Programs in India, Mozambique, Angola, Cape Verde, and Ethiopia supported income generation for disabled adults and for families of disabled children. Inclusive-education initiatives in India and Ethiopia sought to give disabled and other marginalized children access to schooling. DDP also supported disability-rights and inclusion campaigns in Mozambique, Angola, Nepal, India, and Ethiopia. In Nepal, a partner organization took the issue of disabled children's entitlement to free education to the country's Supreme Court. DDP also helped establish a drop-in center for people with mental illness and their families, including a safe environment for women who had become destitute because of mental illness. These activities illustrate the organization's effort to address disability through legal rights, social support, and community participation in addition to clinical rehabilitation. Research became another important part of DDP's model. Its 2008 report on HIV and AIDS and disability in Mozambique documented the exclusion of disabled people from public policies, prevention programs, treatment services, and awareness activities. The research was used to develop programs intended to improve access and inclusion. In 2011, DDP published a participatory report on deaf children in Burundi, examining sign language, education, communication, family experiences, and the prospects for further schooling. The study helped mobilize support for one of the country's few schools for deaf children and for pupils hoping to continue their education. DDP also contributed to international technical guidance. It was included in the core group that helped prepare the World Health Organization's revised Community-Based Rehabilitation guidelines, published in 2011. In addition, it supported the capacity development of Aurora Deaf Aid Africa, a UK-based diaspora organization led by deaf people. The available reference material documents DDP's historical programs and partnerships, but does not establish its current leadership, financial scale, or present operating status.

• 2011

  Contributed to WHO Community-Based Rehabilitation guidelines

  [1]Disability and Development Partnersen.wikipedia.org

  DDP participated in the core group that developed the World Health Organization's revised Community-Based Rehabilitation guidelines.

• 2011

  Published research on deaf children in Burundi

  [1]Disability and Development Partnersen.wikipedia.org

  A participatory study documented the education and communication needs of deaf children and helped inform subsequent support for deaf education.

• 2008

  Published HIV and AIDS and Disability in Mozambique

  [1]Disability and Development Partnersen.wikipedia.org

  The report examined the exclusion of disabled people from HIV and AIDS policy, prevention, treatment, and awareness services in Mozambique.

• 2005

  Renamed Disability and Development Partners

  [1]Disability and Development Partnersen.wikipedia.org

  The charity adopted its current name as its remit broadened from limb rehabilitation to disability-inclusive development and human-rights work.

• 1995

  Registered as a UK charity

  [1]Disability and Development Partnersen.wikipedia.org

  The organization was registered as a charitable entity in London.

• 1992

  Jaipur Limb Campaign founded

  [1]Disability and Development Partnersen.wikipedia.org

  The organization began in the United Kingdom as the Jaipur Limb Campaign, initially emphasizing appropriate prosthetic and rehabilitation services for amputees.

A partnership-based disability and development charity focused on combining rehabilitation with poverty reduction, inclusive education, livelihoods, human rights, research, and local institutional capacity.

• Rehabilitation services

  Prosthetic and orthotic rehabilitation

  DDP funds and strengthens local rehabilitation services, including prosthetic fitting, orthotic devices, and therapy. Its partnerships have supported rehabilitation centers in Mozambique, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, and India, with an emphasis on locally appropriate technology, professional training, and services that can be maintained by local organizations.

• Development support

  Community-based rehabilitation capacity-building

  The organization supports partner institutions to develop technical, training, and community-based rehabilitation programs. This includes professional education, organizational development, and dissemination of practical components such as prefabricated callipers and ankle joints.

• Economic inclusion

  Inclusive livelihoods programs

  Livelihood initiatives have targeted disabled adults and the parents and families of disabled children. Programs in India, Mozambique, Angola, Cape Verde, and Ethiopia sought to reduce poverty by improving access to income generation and economic participation.

• Education access

  Inclusive education programs

  DDP supports projects designed to include disabled and other marginalized children in education. Its work has included advocacy for the right to free education in Nepal and support arising from research into deaf children's access to schooling in Burundi.

• UK landmine-ban campaign

  United Kingdom · International

  Under its former Jaipur Limb Campaign name, DDP was recognized as a founding member of the UK Working Group on Landmines and contributed to campaigning against the use of landmines.

  Outcome. The work connected rehabilitation advocacy with the wider international landmine-ban movement.

  Source
• Disability rights and inclusion campaigns

  Mozambique · Angola · Nepal · India · Ethiopia

  DDP supported local campaigns seeking greater recognition of disabled people's rights and inclusion in education, public services, and national decision-making.

  Outcome. The campaigns included legal advocacy in Nepal concerning disabled children's right to free education.

  Source

• 2005

  Broadened the organization's identity and remitStrategy

  Background

  The original Jaipur Limb Campaign name reflected a focus on prosthetic rehabilitation, while the organization's activities had expanded to include different disabilities and wider development issues.

  Action taken

  The charity changed its name to Disability and Development Partners.

  Aftermath

  The new identity emphasized partnership-based disability inclusion, livelihoods, education, rights, research, and rehabilitation rather than a single prosthetic product or condition.

  Source

1. 1Disability and Development Partnersen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Disability and Development Partners official websiteddpuk.org