Disability-inclusive graduation programme intervention on social participation among ultra-poor people with disability in North Uganda: a cluster randomized trial

Abstract

Background: People with disabilities encounter significant barriers to social participation due to inaccessible environments and negative attitudes. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a comprehensive disability-inclusive graduation (DIG) programme in enhancing social participation among ultra-poor people with disabilities in rural Uganda. Methods: A two-arm, cluster-randomized controlled trial was conducted in four Northern Ugandan districts, involving 96 intervention and 89 control clusters. The DIG intervention encompassed four pillars: Livelihoods, Social Protection, Financial Inclusion, and Social Empowerment. The study identified households with disabilities using the Washington Group Short Set questions, verified by BRAC programme managers, comprising 370 working-age people with disabilities in the intervention group and 321 in the control group at baseline. Treatment clusters received an 18-month DIG intervention from December 2020 to June 2022. Social participation was measured using the SINTEF Participation Question Set at baseline, immediately post-intervention, and 16 months post-intervention, covering household and societal participation domains. Intervention effects were analyzed through linear mixed-effects regression models, reporting minimally adjusted and fully adjusted mean differences (MAMD and FAMD) with 95% confidence intervals. Results: Immediately after the intervention, the DIG programme showed a positive trend in overall social participation (3.04 point increase in intervention group vs. − 0.29 in control), though not statistically significant in fully adjusted analysis (FAMD = 3.14, 95% CI = (− 1.26, 7.54); p = 0.17), possibly due to sample size limitations and variability in individual responses. A larger improvement in societal participation was observed favouring the intervention group (5.92 point increase versus 0.21 in control), with the fully adjusted analysis approaching statistical significance (FAMD = 5.84, 95% CI = (− 0.01, 11.69); p = 0.05). No significant differences were found in the domain of household participation. At 16 months post-intervention, no significant differences were observed between the intervention and control groups in overall scores or any subdomain, suggesting challenges in maintaining initial improvements over time. Conclusions: The DIG programme showed short-term positive effects on social participation among ultra-poor people with disabilities, especially in societal engagement. The absence of long-term sustained improvements underscores the complexity of disability inclusion in resource-constrained settings. Future interventions should develop strategies like extended support or booster sessions to maintain initial gains. Trial registration: Registry for International Development Impact Evaluations (RIDIE-STUDY-ID-626008898983a) and ISRCTN (ISRCTN-78592382).