[Reporting on Inclusion in Germany: Development, Knowledge Base, and Limitations Following the Ratification of the UN...

By ratifying the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) in 2009, Germany undertook to systematically promote the participation of people with disabilities and to report on this regularly. According to the National Action Plan, the data on people with impairments and disabilities are to be improved, with particular attention being paid to the human rights perspective set out in the Convention. To date, three reports designed in accordance with this approach have been published under the programmatic title "Federal Government Report on the Living Conditions of People with Disability: Participation-Impairment-Disability"; a fourth is currently available as a draft.This reporting supports the transition to inclusion-oriented social integration assistance (Eingliederungshilfe) and rehabilitation, which has become mandatory throughout Germany following the ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. As value- and impact-oriented reporting, it can make a significant contribution to this through nuanced and diversity-sensitive data quality. The participation survey is now intended to further expand and continuously improve this solid body of knowledge.This narrative overview traces the development of Participation Reporting, from its normative and institutional foundations through to the current phase of data collection and transformation. It examines the functions, limitations, and unresolved issues of such reporting and asks whether reports actually improve participation. To this end, it clarifies the conceptual foundations, analyses methodological developments and data issues, highlights tensions between different understandings of disability, and outlines the institutional roles involved.