The exposure of adolescent girls with/without disabilities to discrimination: cross-sectional analyses of nationally representative surveys undertaken in 37 countries.

backgroundLittle is known about the prevalence of exposure to discrimination among adolescent girls with/without disability, especially in low- and middle-income countries.

methodsSecondary analysis of nationally representative data collected on self-reported discrimination from 30 705 adolescent girls in 37 low- and middle-income countries in Round 6 (2017-2023) of UNICEF's Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS).

resultsOur results indicated that: (i) adolescent girls with disability were 1.66 times more likely to be exposed to discrimination than adolescent girls without disability; (ii) adolescent girls with disability were at higher risk of exposure to all forms of discrimination measured; (iii) they were also significantly more likely to be exposed to discrimination if they lived in poorer households and had mothers with lower than secondary level education; (iv) there was no association between country level of human development and the magnitude of the risk of adolescent girls with disability being exposed to discrimination.

conclusionsAdolescent girls with disability are at significantly increased risk of exposure to discrimination based on disability and other characteristics (e.g. age, gender). Monitoring risk of discrimination among people with disability needs to move beyond a narrow focus on disability-related discrimination.