Dubai – Becoming a Disability Friendly City by 2020

The Higher Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities announced today in a press conference the launch of “A Friendly Environment for Persons with Disabilities According to Universal Design Principles and Standards”. This project is a joint venture between the General Secretariat of the Executive Council, Road & Transport Authority (RTA), Community Development Authority, and Dubai Municipality, in addition to a number of real estate developers, with the aim of transforming the whole city of Dubai into a barrier-free, inclusive, disability-friendly city for persons with disabilities - a city that respects the rights of persons with disabilities and supports their own free will.

HH Abdullah Al Shaibani, Vice Chairman of The Higher Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Secretary General of the Executive Council of Dubai, HH Mattar Al Tayer Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the RTA, HH Hussain Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality, HH Khaled Al Kamda, Director General of the Community Development Authority, and Mr Majid Al Ossaimi, Member of the Higher Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, participated in the press conference to announce the initiative.

Dubai Strategy for Disabilities 2020    

HE Abdullah Al Shaibani stressed that the local law No. 2 of 2014 on protection of the rights of persons with disabilities in Dubai, issued by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, aims to “Ensure that people with disabilities enjoy all their rights, enhance the level of respect they receive, preserve their dignity and support their capabilities and participation in the development process.”

Al Shaibani added: “In order to ensure the enforcement of this law, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum issued decree No. 3 of 2014 to establish the Higher Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Dubai, to be chaired by His Highness Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, with the aim of ensuring the implementation of the provisions of the local law and supervising the Dubai Strategy for Disabilities 2020, its initiatives and action plans to protect the rights of persons with disabilities.”

HE continued: “The joint project, “A Friendly Environment for Persons with Disabilities According to Universal Design Principles and Standards”, is one of the main outputs of the Dubai Strategy for Disabilities 2020, launched by His Highness Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Higher Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Dubai, aimed to transform Dubai into a disability friendly city by 2020. The strategy includes a number of themes such as healthcare and rehabilitation, integrated education, employment and equality in terms of employment opportunities and public facilities and services, in addition to sustainable social protection in order to make Dubai a friendly city for everyone.”

Dubai… A City for Everyone

The project is based on a comprehensive phase to review and evaluate infrastructure, facilities and public transportation in Dubai. It will also address assessment of policies and standards that will be developed to ensure their suitability for persons with disabilities based on the Universal Design Model and in line with "My Community… A City for Everyone" initiative,  launched by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council, in 2013 to become the strategic platform for creating an integrating and inclusive society.

The project includes a five-year plan ensuring that all types of buildings and facilities, as well as sidewalks, pedestrian crosswalks, roads, buses, trains, marine and air transportation, are suitable for 

persons with disabilities by 2020, with a view to making Dubai one of the best disability friendly cities in the world. Ottawa-based Gates Foundation is responsible for implementing the project that will last over the course of eight months and will include studying, evaluating and rehabilitating standard facilities as per the Universal Design Standards, as well as developing a final form for the design criteria as per Dubai’s slogan.

The project’s implementation in accordance with the Universal Design Standards and principles will allow persons with disabilities to obtain their rights to live in a barrier-free environment without any obstacles limiting their movement on roads, transportation or public utilities. The project will set new standards to rehabilitate the environment and ensure the safety and freedom of movement for persons with disabilities, as well as people with special needs, such as the elderly, pregnant women and others who need assistance and support in public utilities and transportation.

Six phases to make Dubai a disability friendly city

HE Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of RTA, stated: "A Friendly Environment for Persons with Disabilities According to Universal Design Standards” is one of the most significant projects that has emerged from the Dubai Strategy for Disabilities 2020. This project aims to develop a five-year plan ensuring that all buildings, facilities, sidewalks, pedestrian crosswalks, roads, buses and public transportation, are suitable for persons with disabilities.” 

HE explained the details of this project, which consists of six main phases. The project starts with the assessment of the efficiency of laws, regulations, technical standards, practices, procedures and the employees’ specialised technical capacities in this area, and then identifying the gaps and obstacles that must be addressed. This phase is expected to be completed by the end of the second quarter of this year.

Following that phase, a study will be conducted to identify the best international and regional practices in this area, as well as considering ways to develop standards that meet the special requirements of Dubai. The third phase will include updating the laws and regulations and developing a comprehensive guide for standards of Dubai according to the Universal Design standards and principles for buildings, facilities and transportation services, in addition to improving the relevant engineering procedures and practices. This phase is expected to be completed by the end of the second quarter of this year.

The fourth phase includes the formulation of a five-year strategy to ensure the transformation of all buildings, facilities and transportation services in Dubai into disability friendly facilities by 2020, and to ensure that all new establishments (including buildings, facilities and means of transportation) in Dubai are in line with the adopted environment standards. The development of the five-year strategy will be completed by the end of the third quarter of this year.

The fifth phase of this project will involve launching a training program to ensure the implementation of qualified environment standards. This phase will target engineers and technicians specialised in the design, implementation and maintenance of buildings, utilities and means of transportation from the local government sector as well as the private sector, in order to ensure the proper and effective transfer of knowledge.

In the sixth and final phase, four pilot projects will be implemented in selected sites in Dubai. In this phase, a detailed check will be performed to identify gaps and errors in the designs of these sites, and then identify all the required repairs and improvements to transform them into disability friendly sites. These pilot projects will be used in the process of training local employees. This phase is expected to be completed by the end of the year. 

Benchmarks to ensure conformity with buildings specification 

HW Eng. Hussain Nasser Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality, said that the UAE Federal and local laws ensure the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities through transforming infrastructure services into ones that suit all society members, including persons with disabilities. To that end, Dubai Strategy for Disabilities 2020 developed benchmarks and methods of measuring the adherence to such standards, covering health, employment, education, IT, means of communication, buildings and public facilities areas.

HE stressed that Dubai Municipality constantly encourages owners of buildings to adopt simple designs that are accessible by persons with disabilities. This is done through special standards listed for them in the Green Building Regulations and Specifications, thus contributing to the sustainability of the city of Dubai. This is reflected in adopting the standards of the parking spaces for persons with disabilities and empowering this segment of society.

“Dubai Municipality provides recreational services for all community members, including persons with disabilities. This is represented in Dubai’s multiple facilities, such as entertainment places for families, especially reputable public parks with their distinctive specifications that meet the needs of persons with disabilities. These parks also include activities such as Children's City which is considered an outlet for all children, as well as the Garden Glow, and other public recreational places for families, 

including beaches and the pedestrian sidewalks for persons with disabilities, in addition to specialised water chairs for swimming and qualified employees who ensure their safety. This service is considered one of a kind in the region. In addition, the city provides car parking and fully-equipped toilets, as well as specialised games for children with disabilities. Also, persons with disabilities are exempt from entrance fees to access all these facilities,” Lootah added.  

The Director General concluded his speech, saying: “Dubai Municipality's role in transforming Dubai into a disability friendly city is not restricted to developing and checking the conditions of buildings, it extends to launching community initiatives that aim to serve persons with disabilities and the elderly through effective communication, fulfilling their needs, providing jobs for them and developing their talents and potentials. All this is in line with the Municipality vision to be a global reference for developing Dubai as one of the smartest and most sustainable cities in the world by 2021.” 

Accessible Environment is a prerequisite to ensure integration of persons with disabilities in the society

In his speech, HE Khaled Al Kamda, Director General of Community Development Authority said: “The ‘My Community... A City for Everyone’ initiative developed a clear vision to empower and integrate persons with disabilities in the community following the approach of our wise government that aims to promote equal opportunities for all, and maintain social cohesion. In order to achieve the initiative's objectives and turn this vision into a reality for all members of society, we work with all government and concerned authorities to leverage the best practices and standards in line with the needs of our community.

“This project is so important, because an accessible environment is a prerequisite to ensure the integration of persons with disabilities within society. An accessible environment allows them to benefit from opportunities, and live a normal life with the rest of the community members,” he added.

“Reviewing laws, legislations and policies related to global designing contributes to identifying the aspects and gaps that need development and fixing. This is to ensure eliminating all obstacles that may prevent the integration of persons with disabilities in the environment, public facilities and transportation,” Al Kamda continued.

The Director General of Community Development Authority also announced during the press conference that the authority has signed the contract and appropriated the required funds, allowing the initiation of preliminary procedures to implement the project. He concluded his speech by saying: “We are delighted to be part of the system concerned with the full transformation into a disability friendly environment; it also includes government authorities concerned with developing the 

infrastructure of the environment to be accessed by persons with disabilities, such as the Roads & Transport Authority and Dubai Municipality.” 

Joint Efforts

All governmental and semi-governmental authorities are joining efforts to transform Dubai into an inclusive disability-friendly city by the year 2020. The project "A Friendly Environment for Persons with Disabilities According to Universal Design Principles and Standards" is being run by a competent work team led by the Roads & Transport Authority and with the participation of the Community Development Authority, Dubai Municipality, a group of real-estate developers, Knowledge and Human Development Authority, Dubai Health Authority, Dubai Sports Council and Dubai Education Zone, among others.