The Minister of Social Rights, Consumption and Agenda 2030, Pablo Bustinduy, visited the Spanish Center this Tuesday on autism spectrum disorder and has sponsored the presentation of the first Action Plan of the Spanish Strategy on ASD. An instrument that will allow “landing and concretizing” the measures of that strategy, which has with an endowment of 40 million eurosand will develop for the next three years. “Social policy is a pillar that helps us build a country with more dignity for everyone“Bustinduy said.
In it World Autism Awareness Day 2024which is commemorated this Tuesday, April 2, the Minister of Social Rights described it as an “honor” to visit a center that is an advisor to the Royal Board on Disability and was born as a pilot project financed with funds from the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan. “Since then has been doing an exemplary job“, he reviewed.
The Spanish Center, managed by the Autism Spain Confederation, has among its pillars participatory research, training and dissemination on ASD
In Spain, with the most updated data available (IMSERSO, 2021), there are more than 125,000 people (127,612) with ASD who have a disability certificate. Of all of them, 76.5% are men (97,620) and 23.5% are women (29,992). The Spanish Center, managed by the Autism Confederation Spainhas among its pillars participatory research, training and dissemination on ASD.
Neurobiological origin
Autism Spectrum Disorder It is a condition of neurobiological origin that affects the configuration of the nervous system and brain function. It accompanies the person throughout their life and fundamentally affects two areas of personal functioning: communication and social interaction, and flexibility of the behavior and thought.
The minister has stated that the Action Plan that he presented this Tuesday responds to the needs of this group and their families and which, in addition, allows us to achieve the objectives set out in the Spanish ASD Strategy approved in 2015, unanimously by all political groups. Among others, the inclusion of the group in key areas (education and employment) or improving early care for this disability
“When what is at stake is the improvement of the lives of people with some type of disability, we are capable of overcoming our differences and committing ourselves to defending the general interest. We want to make Spain a country that welcome, care for and respect human diversity“said the minister.
15 strategic lines
The plan is articulated around 15 strategic linesamong which the creation of a Spanish center for cognitive accessibility, the training of professionals; the implementation of programs early detection of deficiencies or a plan for the protection of health versus pseudotherapies.
In 2022, the BOE published Royal Decree 670/2022, of August 1, which regulated the direct granting of subsidies to various entities for carrying out technological innovation, research and scientific dissemination projects on universal accessibility. Among them, the start-up, then as a pilot projectfrom a specialized center, promoted by the Spanish Autism Confederation.
With data from this same entity, the group is at the bottom of labor inclusion. According to European figures, between 76 and 90% of adults with ASD are unemployed and do not carry out any productive or work activity. With studies of Autism Spain presented a study that shows that people with ASD They want to work and that the Spanish business community is unaware of their employment potential. Among the elements that make it difficult access to employment to the collective, they highlight the lack of opportunities, prejudices and the absence of specific support programs.