Monitoring conducted at Republican Special Boarding School No. 5 within the framework of “Human Rights Month”

Within the framework of the “Human Rights Month” declared upon the initiative of the Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan, independent monitoring groups of the Ombudsman conducted monitoring at Republican Special Boarding School No. 5 for children with complete and partial visual impairments.

The main purpose of the monitoring was to assess the state of ensuring the right to education of children with disabilities within the framework of the Ombudsman’s mandate as an independent monitoring mechanism for monitoring and promoting the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as well as ensuring the right to equality and preventing discrimination.

The monitoring groups held individual discussions with students with complete and partial visual impairments studying at the institution, the teaching staff, as well as the psychologist. At the same time, visually impaired teachers working at the institution voluntarily answered the questions included in the public survey conducted by the Ombudsman regarding the rights of persons with disabilities.

During the monitoring, examinations were carried out regarding the conduct of the educational process and attendance, provision of educational materials, organization of leisure time and psychological work, quality of food provision, and accessibility of infrastructure. Inspections were also conducted in the canteen, library, bathrooms, and sanitary facilities.

It was proposed to create conditions for the wider use of audio materials through the application of new methods in order to increase students’ access to information, broaden their worldview, and contribute to their full and equal participation in society.

At the end of the monitoring, recommendations were provided to the institution’s management regarding a number of issues identified in the field of ensuring accessibility for persons with visual and mobility impairments.