Celebrating a Successful Partnership: CARD’s Work with Deaf Children

Since 2012, Deaf Child Worldwide has been working with the Citizen’s Association for Rural Development (CARD) to improve the lives of deaf children in Ganjam District, Odisha, India. This partnership has focused on the educational and social inclusion of deaf children in these communities.

The Citizens Association for Rural Development (CARD) is a non-profit organisation, founded in 1991, working in Ganjam district of Odisha. Based in Berhampur, Odisha, the organisation is dedicated to creating inclusive, equitable solutions for the most vulnerable populations.

In partnership with DCW over the past 10 years, CARD introduced key initiatives to advance the learning of deaf children. From pre-primary to primary education, and through livelihoods interventions and Fun and Learning Centres, over 448 deaf children and young people have benefitted in various ways, most importantly gaining crucial language and communication skills. These efforts have boosted literacy and empowered families across the region.

The numbers speak for themselves: 991 parents, 2983 government schoolteachers, and healthcare workers have directly benefited from CARD’s outreach work in partnership with DCW. This work empowered parents to advocate for their children. CARD and its parent groups also developed vital links with the District Education Department that have enabled the authorities to understand the needs of deaf children better and introduce measures to promote inclusive education.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the CARD team quickly developed teaching resources to ensure that learning could continue at home. During this critical time, strong relationships with parents helped keep children engaged in their education. As a result, when the deaf children returned to school, it was found that they had not fallen behind with their learning.

More recently, the CARD team’s efforts on developing Adapted Resource Materials based on the state-prescribed textbooks that help deaf children understand the curriculum better have been acknowledged by the authorities who agree that these would be used district-wide to support deaf children in Odisha.

As the partnership with DCW comes to a close, CARD commits to continuing its work to bring lasting change to the lives of deaf children in Ganjam District and beyond.

Head of South Asia at Deaf Child Worldwide, Shampa Nath, shares her gratitude for this incredible collaboration and looks forward to a bright future where every deaf child can access the support they need.