An estimated 106 million children – 6% of the world’s young people – suffer from a moderate to severe disability. Without treatment, 90% of these children in the developing world will never have the opportunity to access education, employment, marriage or to live a self-sufficient life. Worldwide, the most common form of employment for disabled children is begging.
ALTSO’s patients are children under the age of 19 in developing countries who have lost their limbs in traumatic accidents or were born with limb deformities – and cannot afford the simple prosthetic limb or surgery they need to be able to walk.
Without treatment, children in the developing world are subjected to a lifetime of missed opportunities.
MOBILITY
Disabled children in rural areas without transportation cannot walk the average 1.5 miles to school. As a result, 90% of disabled children in the developing world do not attend school.
EDUCATION
No education means limited, low-paying and often dangerous work options – like street-begging or gathering plastic from toxic landfills.
LIVELIHOOD
Sadly, marrying a disabled person in the developing world is often considered a financial burden and social stigma. A simple surgery or prosthetic limb can change that.