---

About the Center for International Rehabilitation (CIR)

Q:  What is the CIR's mission?

A:   The CIR’s mission is to assist people with disabilities worldwide in achieving their full potential.

Q: How was the CIR founded?

A: The CIR was founded in 1996 as Physicians Against Land Mines (PALM) by Dr. William Kennedy Smith.  PALM was part of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, recipient of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize. PALM changed its name to CIR with the opening of its research and development center in Chicago in 1999.

Q: Does the CIR collaborate with any other organizations?

A: The CIR has consultative status with the United Nations (UN) and Memorandums of Understanding with the Pan American Health Organization, the Organization of American States and the World Health Organization (WHO). In addition, the CIR operates in collaboration with the renowned Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and Northwestern University, and has a network of over 30 affiliate organizations around the globe.

Q: Does the CIR support any policies related to the disability community?

A: The CIR is a member of the steering committee of the International Disability Caucus, a consortium of over 40 disability organizations participating in negotiations for a UN treaty, or convention, protecting the human rights of people with disabilities. The convention is known as the "Comprehensive and Integral International Convention to Promote and Protect the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities."

---

About disability

Q: What is the percentage of people with disabilities worldwide?

A: Figures vary, but the WHO estimates that about ten percent of the global population, or over 500 million persons, have a disability.

Q: Where do the majority of people with disabilities live?

A: According to the WHO, approximately two-thirds of all people with disabilities live in developing countries.  Approximately 80 percent of those two-thirds live in isolated rural areas where rehabilitative and other necessary services are unavailable.

Q: Is the percentage of people with disabilities increasing, and if so, what are the causes?

A: The number of people with disabilities continues to increase due to war and other forms of violence, inadequate medical and rehabilitation services and natural disasters.

Q: What percentage of children have disabilities?

A: Ten percent of children worldwide, over 200 million, are born with or will develop a disability (UN).

Q: What is the impact of conflict on disability?

A: Landmines and unexploded ordnances are one of the greatest causes of war-related disability worldwide, impacting over 70 countries.  Over 90 percent of those affected by these landmines are innocent civilians; 30-40 percent are children under the age of 15 (UNICEF).

---

About landmines

Q: Which countries are most affected by landmines?

A: About 70 countries are affected. The war-torn countries most severely affected by mines include Angola, Afghanistan, Cambodia, Bosnia, Croatia, Vietnam, Mozambique, Iraq, Somalia, Eritrea, Sudan, Columbia, Chechnya, Myanmar and India.

Q: Which country is the most heavily mined?

A: Afghanistan ranks as one of the world's most heavily mined countries. An estimated 5-7 million landmines--in about 50 different varieties--are believed to be deployed there. Only two of Afghanistan's twenty-nine provinces are believed to be free of mines and unexploded ordnance. The most heavily affected provinces are Herat and Kandahar. The provinces bordering on Pakistan and Iran, which are the most common destinations for refugees fleeing the country, are also heavily mined.

Q: What percentage of landmine victims are children?

A: The United Nations Children's Fund estimates that 30-40% of all mine victims are children under the age of 15. Landmines cause extensive injuries, which often lead to amputation, severe disabilities and psychological trauma.

Q: How often do amputees need new prostheses?

A: A growing child needs a new artificial limb every six to twelve months. An adult requires a new prosthesis every three to five years. The United States Department of State estimates that fewer than one in four landmine amputees is fitted with a proper prosthesis.

Q: Are there any treaties against the use of landmines?

A: The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Landmines and on Their Destruction - The Mine Ban Treaty - entered into force on March 1, 1999. A total of 134 countries are State Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty, including the European North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies. Another 13 countries have signed, but not ratified the treaty. The United States, Russia and China have not signed.