The Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare has taken an important initiative by publishing for the first time the National Strategy for Disability in the form of a "Text for All". The aim of the project is to deliver the content of the National Strategy in a simple, clear and easily understandable form so that people with intellectual disabilities can be effectively informed about the policies, measures and rights that concern them.
This initiative, which was presented today at a conference at Estia Journalists, is based on the belief that accessibility is not limited to the removal of physical barriers and the construction of ramps, but extends to unhindered access to information itself, which is a prerequisite for the equal participation of every citizen in public life.
Welcoming the initiative, the Deputy Minister of Social Welfare, Klea Hadjistefanou Papaellina, stressed that the Revised National Strategy for the Action Plan on Disability is the basic policy framework of the Republic of Cyprus for the promotion of the rights of persons with disabilities with the aim of fully implementing the United Nations Convention.
Among other things, she mentioned that often when we talk about accessibility we focus on infrastructure and the removal of physical barriers, but accessibility, as he stressed, has an equally important dimension, access to information. Without understandable and accessible information, there can be no substantial participation in political and public life, she said. According to her, this revision was carried out with the active participation of 54 people with intellectual disabilities and people on the autism spectrum, who participated in the evaluation and testing of the text, contributing decisively to the formation of the final result.
The importance of this message was also reinforced through the personal narratives of two children with intellectual disabilities, who spoke about the experience and the opportunity they were given to participate in something that concerns them. Specifically, Stefanos Melas from the Second Intervention Center of the Pancyprian Association for People with Autismand Pantelis Panteli from the "Christou Stelios Ioannou" Foundation, spoke about their experience in participating in the whole process. They made special reference to the importance of their participation in this process, since it directly concerns them. They also mentioned how the result of this process made their accessibility to information easier.
In closing, Ms. Papaellina said that this project can be the trigger for a more systematic and institutional approach to accessibility and information in Cyprus.
The senior officer of Social Integration of People with Disabilities of the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare and president of the Committee for the Protection of People with Intellectual Disabilities, Vasiliki Fragaki, spoke about the importance of this project. As she said, their wish and goal is for the project not to be an isolated initiative but the starting point of a wider and more systematic effort, so that more and more public documents, information and services become accessible to all.
In turn, the officer of the Committee for the Protection of Persons with Disabilities, Maria Georgiou, spoke about the process and methodology followed for the perfection of the project by the NOESI team. GR but also by the committee itself. Mrs. Georgiou presented the methodology by dividing it into 7 points. She made special reference to the fact that this initiative can be the basis for the development of a more systematic and coordinated framework for the production of accessible information.
The "Revised National Strategy" was prepared by the Department of Social Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in collaboration with eight ministries and four deputy ministries. The translation of the text was entrusted to the Committee for the Protection of People with Intellectual Disabilities (EPA). The design and scientific editing of the publication were implemented by the specialized NOESI team. GR (Cognition).
