Belarus provides support to children with special needs

On March 21, the world celebrates International Down Syndrome Day every year. Children with Down syndrome are born with the same frequency in all countries of the world – one in 600-800 newborns. Medical assistance, early intervention programs, the opportunity to receive an education and lead a social life on an equal footing with everyone else are very important for such children.

In order to harmonize the development of children with developmental disabilities, as well as to support their families, the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Belarus, together with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), is developing an early intervention system and establishing early intervention centers. Today, 39 centers operate in Belarus, 5 of them are based on orphanages. 20,398 children under three years of age have already received assistance from the centers’ specialists.

The national system of early intervention is based on the principle of accessibility, is family-oriented and makes an important contribution to the achievement by the Republic of Belarus of Sustainable Development Goals 3, 10 and other SDGs.

More detailed information about the early intervention centers in Belarus can be found at the link: https://prostodeti.by/crv.