Open Society Mental Health Initiative2006 Activities
In 2006, the Open Society Mental Health Initiative (MHI) provided funding, training, and technical assistance to NGOs in 13 countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. MHI’s grants program supports activities that stimulate the reform of national health, social welfare, education, and employment policies. The initiative also provides technical assistance and training in substantive areas to its partners.
By the end of the year, MHI support for various projects had helped introduce community-based service models in the region that allowed some people with mental disabilities to leave institutions, and prevented others from having to enter them. A number of education programs allowed children with mental disabilities to get access to education they otherwise would not have received, and some governments in the region adopted policies that promote the inclusion of people with mental disabilities. Equally important was the work that mental disability NGOs and people with mental disabilities and their families did to become more involved in policy and legislative reform.
The following briefs describe some of the initiative’s activities and achievements in 2006.
Serbia Moves to Deinstitutionalize People with Intellectual Disabilities
Serbia plans to replicate nationally a pilot project to deinstitutionalize people with intellectual disabilities and provide them with support services in the community. The government’s commitment is the first of its kind in Central and Eastern Europe. Since 2003, the Open Society Mental Health Initiative has supported the pilot program, the Serbian Association for Promoting Inclusion, as well as other organizations throughout the region working to integrate people with intellectual disabilities.
Azerbaijan Explores Community-Based Alternatives for Disabled People
The Mental Health Initiative launched a $1.5 million project to promote the human rights of people with mental disabilities in Azerbaijan, working with the government to find community-based alternatives to institutions. People who are deinstitutionalized need to have access to decent education that meets their needs, access to health care, and other social supports. The initiative will work closely with ministries and civil society organizations over the next five years to ensure that participation in society is not a special privilege but a fundamental human right.
