In the years 2007-2010 (first half), the State Fund for Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons (PFRON) co-financed five large programmes supporting vocational activation of the disabled. Within these programmes and numerous smaller initiatives, non-governmental organisations received almost PLN 300 million. According to the NIK, these funds have been allocated properly. The NIK has also positively assessed promotional campaigns ran by the PFRON that disseminated information on the programmes implemented.
Nevertheless, the NIK have stated that the implemented programmes had shortcomings. Above all, they lacked a thorough analysis of the needs that the programmes were expected to satisfy. The programmes were also implemented without prior information on the number of potential participants and without proper cost simulations.
Several irregularities have been also found with regard to the implementation of the programmes. The NIK has negatively assessed changing the rules of cooperation with non-governmental organisations after commencement of programmes, reductions in already granted funds and delays in financial settlements. In some cases, settlements were delayed by as many as three years. As a result, some organisations decided to withdraw from cooperation with the PFRON.
The NIK has also voiced reservations about the lack of the assessment of the programmes effectiveness. For example, the objective of the Job Coach programme (Polish: Trener Pracy) was not measurable, what made it practically impossible to assess the programme realisation. The NIK also points out that, although in the majority of the audited labour offices the number of registered disabled persons grew year by year, the effectiveness of measures aimed at helping them to find employment dropped simultaneously. For example, the percentage of trainees who found employment after completing the traineeship co-financed by the PFRON dropped from 71.5 percent in 2007 to 36 percent in 2010.
The NIK also indicates that the disabled face serious barriers which hinder access to offices. In half of the buildings audited by the NIK, including city offices and employment agencies, significant architectural barriers have been found. Architectonic barriers were removed from main office space only, however other rooms and upper storeys remained unadapted. That is why many offices still cannot be considered disabled friendly.
