In Dubai, thousands of buildings are being upgraded to meet the needs of people with special needs.
Thousands of schools, hospitals and hotels in Dubai will be modernized over the next three years to facilitate access to old buildings for people with disabilities.
Similar work is underway throughout the country. The authorities at the federal level stimulate cooperation between the public and private sectors to implement the program.
This step is part of a wider commitment to creating an accessible environment for people with special needs.
Salem Al Shafei, director of politics and programs at the General Secretariat of the Executive Council of Dubai, said that the number of facilities to be modernized amounts to thousands, including schools, medical facilities, mosques, parks and other buildings.
“Only the tourism sector has about 680 hotels,” he said, noting that modernization will affect facilities in 10 key sectors, including education, healthcare and tourism.
Developers will not be able to obtain permits for the construction of new buildings without following the rules on accessibility.
At the launch of the “Making Dubai Disability Friendly” program hosted by Emirates NBD, Al Shafei said that there is already a team working on key tasks that span more than 100 km of streets and road networks . The implementation period is 2020.
Setting goals for the next three years is important because of the Dubai Expo 2020, during which 25 million people are expected to arrive within six months from October 2020.
“The team inspects each building in 10 categories,” he said, “Even if we do not achieve 100 percent implementation of the strategy, 80 or 90 percent on the way to our goal will entail a noticeable improvement in people's lives.”
