Main Event: Building future ready, inclusive infrastructure for all – New challenges & local solutions

Accessibility is not merely a standalone right, but a pre-condition for realizing the entire Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Many countries have enacted accessibility laws and policies that are supposed to ensure the accessibility of infrastructure to allow everyone to navigate the world independently, yet implementation remains uneven. Data shows that in developing countries, 33% of persons with disabilities find their dwelling inaccessible, while 43% report that transportation is not accessible. Globally, in 2022, only 57% of buildings, 52% of playgrounds, and 51% of museums were accessible to wheelchair users. Alarming gaps persist in health care facilities—often exceeding 30% inaccessibility, and in some countries reaching 80%. Even more concerning, accessibility in transportation has declined in certain developing countries since 2018.

With 16 percent of persons worldwide living with one or more disabilities, it is critical to place inclusion and access to spaces and public services as well as participation in social and economic activities for persons with disabilities accessibility at the heart of public infrastructure development. In this session, where representatives of governments, innovators, organisations of persons with disabilities (OPDs), and others come together, we will examine how accessible infrastructure must look like, dive into examples of what has worked in driving accessible infrastructure locally and take stock of our progress towards fulfilling Article 9 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the Sustainable Development Goal 11 (SDG 11) on Sustainable Cities and Communities. 

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