Nearly one person in seven feels disabled in Luxembourg

Nearly 15% of people living in Luxembourg claim to be disabled. While this proportion is the same for men and women, it increases sharply with age. The most frequently encountered disabilities are visual impairment (8.9% of the total population), reduced mobility (3.9%) and hearing impairment (2.5%). The level of education of disabled people is lower than that of other people. Their integration into the job market is also more complicated. This is evidenced by an employment rate of 57.1%, below the national average, and an unemployment rate of 8.0%, above the national average.

For the first time, the 2021 population census will address the issue of disability. This will provide unprecedented information on the population concerned. Until now, similar data has been collected in Luxembourg sporadically via surveys such as the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) or the Health Survey of Residents (EHIS). Unfortunately, these surveys never cover the entire population. Their scope is generally limited to people in certain age brackets, and some are excluded, such as people living in collective households (institutions). The census is not limited in this sense: it covers the entire resident population, without restriction of age or residence.

The concept of disability is complex, and to measure it we need to take into account a multitude of dimensions. Unfortunately, in the context of a survey or census, it is difficult to identify people with disabilities. Compromises therefore have to be made as to the definition of disability to be used, because of the limited possibilities of covering all potential perspectives. It is therefore necessary to choose a pragmatic approach, depending on the number of questions that can be included. These considerations have led to the set of questions for the 2021 population census. These questions cover both the type and degree of disability. It is important to point out that the answers to these questions are subjective, in that they reflect the situation as perceived by the people concerned or their guardians.