Guinea-Bissau

Victim Assistance

Last updated: 18 July 2018

Victim assistance action points

  • Dedicate increased national and international funding to address the needs and promote the rights of mine/explosive remnants of war (ERW) survivors and other persons with disabilities.
  • Ensure that broader programs, such as international cooperation for post-conflict reconstruction and poverty reduction, reach the most vulnerable members of society, including survivors and other persons with disabilities.
  • Train mine/ERW survivors and other persons with disabilities to advocate for equal opportunities and increased access to assistance.

Victim assistance planning and coordination

Government focal point

Ministry of Freedom Fighters of the Fatherland (Ministério dos Combatentes da Liberdade da Pátria)[1]

Coordination regularity/frequency and outcomes/effectiveness

Political instability since 2012 prevented victim assistance coordination and planning[2]

Plans/strategies

National Victim Assistance Strategy

Disability sector integration

Not reported

Survivor inclusion and participation

Not reported

Reporting (Article 7 and statements)

As of May 2018, Guinea-Bissau had not reported on progress made towards the implementation of its National Victim Assistance Strategy

 

International commitments and obligations

Guinea-Bissau is responsible for significant numbers of mine/ERW survivors. As of December 2016, there were more than 1,426 mine/ERW survivors recorded

Mine Ban Treaty

Yes

Convention on Cluster Munitions

Yes

Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) Protocol V

Yes

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)

Yes

 

Laws and policies

There is no law specifically prohibiting discrimination against persons with disabilities.[3] No efforts were made to counter discrimination against persons with disabilities and ensure access to buildings.[4] No improvement was reported in the accessibility of the survivors’ physical environment in 2017.[5]

Former military personnel with disabilities received pensions from the Ministry of Defense and Ex-Combatants, but these programs did not adequately address health, housing, or food needs.[6]

Major Developments in 2017–2018

No major changes were reported.[7]

Medical care and rehabilitation

Large parts of the population do not have access to health services.[8]

Through 2017, the Center for Physical Rehabilitation (Centro de Reabilitação Motora, CRM) remained the only physical rehabilitation center for the country, providing free rehabilitation services for survivors in economic need.[9] In 2017, people continued to be referred to the CRM through field visits jointly coordinated by the CRM, the ICRC, and the Federation for the Promotion of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.[10] In 2017, the CRM treated more than 2,350 patients, a 30% increase compared to 2016, and produced 125 prosthetic devices for mine/ERW survivors and other persons with disabilities. The center also provided 73 wheelchairs and 72 pairs of crutches in 2017.[11] Some limited rehabilitation services were also provided in healthcare centers, although staff were not qualified.[12]

Since 2015, mine/ERW survivors from Senegal have been receiving prosthetic devices at the CRM through an agreement between the ICRC and Solidarity Initiative for Development Actions (Initiative Solidaire des Actions de Développement, ISAD).[13] In 2017 and through May 2018, 30 mine survivors were fitted with new prosthetic devices at the CRM.[14]

The ICRC reimbursed the costs for patients, including mine/ERW survivors who accessed services, provided equipment and materials, and supported technical and management training programs to improve the quality of the service.[15]

Socio-economic and psychosocial inclusion

In 2017, Humanity & Inclusion (formerly Handicap International, HI) promoted the socio-economic inclusion of persons with disabilities through training courses.[16] HI also provided financial support to the National Union for People with Motor Disabilities and War Victims (União Nacional dos Deficientes Motores e Vítimas de Guerra, UNDEMOV).[17] Guinea-Bissau has a federation for inclusive sports supported by the ICRC.[18] In 2017, the ICRC donated six sports wheelchairs to the federation.[19]

Plan International and HI operated inclusive schools in addition to the two national schools for visually and hearing-impaired students.[20]

In 2016, the Federation for the Promotion of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in partnership with HI started a three-year project supported by the European Union to strengthen the rights of persons with disabilities.[21] In 2017, HI was working with 20 disabled peoples’ organizations to build their capacities for assistance and advocacy.[22]

Victim assistance providers and activities

Name of organization

Type of activity

Government

Center for Physical Rehabilitation (Centro de Reabilitação Motora, CRM)

Physical rehabilitation,[23] prosthetics, mobility devices[24]

International

Humanity & Inclusion (formerly Handicap International, HI)

Inclusive education,[25] socio-economic inclusion,[26] advocacy for the rights of persons with disabilities[27]

ICRC

Rehabilitation, inclusive sports, technical and management training[28]

 



[1] Email from Joao Kennedy de Pina Araujo, Director, Center for Physical Rehabilitation (Centro de Reabilitação Motora, CRM), 15 May 2018.

[2] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Carlos A. Delgado, Physical Rehabilitation Project Manager, ICRC, 17 May 2018.

[3] United States (US) Department of State, “Guinea-Bissau 2017 Human Rights Report,” Washington, DC, 20 April 2018, p. 10.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Carlos A. Delgado, ICRC, 17 May 2018.

[6] US Department of State, “Guinea-Bissau 2017 Human Rights Report,” Washington, DC, 20 April 2018, p. 10.

[7] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Carlos A. Delgado, ICRC, 17 May 2018.

[8] Email from Joao Kennedy de Pina Araujo, CRM, 15 May 2018.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Carlos A. Delgado, ICRC, 17 May 2018.

[12] Ibid.

[13] Ibid.; ICRC, “Annual Report 2016,” Geneva, May 2017, p. 224; and ICRC, “Faits & Chiffres 2016: CICR Bissau” (“Facts & Figures 2016: ICRC Bissau”), February 2017.

[14] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Carlos A. Delgado, ICRC, 17 May 2018.

[15] Ibid.

[16] Email from Candida Salgado Silva, HI, 17 May 2018; and “ONG Handicap Internacional forma mais de 500 professores nos primeiros seis meses do ano em curso” (“The NGO Handicap International forms more than 500 teachers in the first six months of the current year”), Agência de Notícias da Guiné, 5 October 2017.

[17] Email from Candida Salgado Silva, HI, 17 May 2018.

[18] Email from Joao Kennedy de Pina Araujo, CRM, 15 May 2018.

[19] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Carlos A. Delgado, ICRC, 17 May 2018.

[20] Email from Joao Kennedy de Pina Araujo, CRM, 15 May 2018.

[21] European External Action Service, “A União Europeia anuncia o lançamento do projecto de fortalecimento dos direitos das pessoas com deficiencia na Guiné-Bissau” (“The European Union announces the launch of the project to strengthen the rights of persons with disabilities in Guinea-Bissau”), 5 May 2016.

[22] HI, “Country Card Guinea-Bissau 2017,” October 2017, p. 3; and “ONG Handicap Internacional forma mais de 500 professores nos primeiros seis meses do ano em curso” (“The NGO Handicap International forms more than 500 teachers in the first six months of the current year”), Agência de Notícias da Guiné, 5 October 2017.

[23] Email from Joao Kennedy de Pina Araujo, CRM, 15 May 2018.

[24] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Carlos A. Delgado, ICRC, 17 May 2018.

[25] Email from Joao Kennedy de Pina Araujo, CRM, 15 May 2018.

[26] Email from Candida Salgado Silva, HI, 17 May 2018.

[27] European External Action Service, “A União Europeia anuncia o lançamento do projecto de fortalecimento dos direitos das pessoas com deficiencia na Guiné-Bissau” (“The European Union announces the launch of the project to strengthen the rights of persons with disabilities in Guinea-Bissau”), 5 May 2016.

[28] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Carlos A. Delgado, ICRC, 17 May 2018.