People with disability in Brazil: a look at 2000 Census results

Alicia Bercovich, Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE)

Questions related to people with disability were included in the Brazilian Censuses since 1872 until 1940. On the second half of the century, they were excluded from the Census Forms. The enactment of Law No. 7.853 dated October 1989, brought the obligation of including questions on people with disability in the censuses. Since 1991, the Brazilian Censuses include questions on disability. In 2000 the questions were formulated by the IBGE and the National Coordination for the Integration of People with Disability (CORDE), from Brazilian Government. The pilot tests carried for different sets of questions permitted to select those that best identified the population studied. The analyses of the results of these tests, led to the questions applied. Some questions use the concept of limitation of activities. Other two questions refer to body functions and structures. The conceptual basis is compatible with the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health, ICF (2001) published by the WHO. The analysis performed to evaluate the consistency of the results of the Census, together with the relationship among disability and vulnerability, are detailed in paper.