IOM’s Commitment to Disability Inclusion: Empowering the Deaf Community and Promoting Sign Language in Iraq.

By Haneen Mohammed, Senior Disability Inclusion Assistant

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Iraq has made significant strides in disability inclusion (DI) in recent years, ensuring individuals with disabilities, including the deaf community, have equitable access to services and opportunities. A key focus of these efforts has been promoting sign language (SL) as a bridge to greater inclusion.

Deaf-Inclusive Research to Shape Policies

IOM’s Disability Inclusion Strategy (2022–2024) highlights the specific needs of Iraq’s deaf community, who often face barriers to education, employment and social participation due to limited access to sign language. IOM has addressed these challenges by facilitating deaf-led participatory research and consultations with deaf individuals, SL interpreters and deaf-led organizations. This approach identified gaps in SL services across Iraq and provided a roadmap for improving access and inclusion. The results were used to advocate for improved inclusion policies in both humanitarian and development programmes. Visual learning resources were also produced to share these findings across Iraq.

Promoting Sign Language Awareness

To further advocate for disability inclusion, IOM produced several Information, Education and Communication (IEC) materials to raise awareness about the deaf community and SL. These materials address the challenges faced by deaf individuals, the importance of SL as a primary communication tool and how hearing communities can promote inclusion and respect for SL culture. By disseminating these materials widely in English, Arabic and Kurdish, IOM aims to raise public awareness about accessibility and the cultural identity of the deaf community.