World Blind Union & CBM Global launch AccessibilityGO! A Guide to Action

News | January 9, 2022

With 10 years to realise the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, accessibility is foundational to build a more inclusive, equitable world where no-one is left behind in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Recent examples of global crises like the Covid-19 pandemic, show us that we need to urgently increase our efforts to address persisting and emerging accessibility barriers which sustain inequalities and exclusion of persons with disabilities. The answer to this critical challenge begins with a willingness to change and work together to take a few collective steps forward in creating a world that removes barriers and promotes inclusion. Organisations around the world must decide on how to adapt their structures and services to be accessible to and inclusive of all within their communities.

To address this, World Blind Union and CBM Global Disability Inclusion are delighted to introduce the newly developed AccessibilityGO! A Guide to Action. It provides practical support on how to deliver a whole-of-organisation approach towards accessibility. It describes how to progressively achieve 7 core accessibility commitments across built environments, information and communications, procurement of goods and services, training and capacity development, programmes, meetings and events, recruitment, and human resource (HR) management. The guide offers pathways to progressively realise accessibility in various contexts and organisations; recognising that users of the guide will come from different starting points.

The development of AccessibilityGO! A Guide to Action puts organisations of persons with disabilities (OPDs) at the forefront of action on disability inclusion and accessibility. Jointly produced and informed by OPDs, the guide can be used to improve how accessibility is addressed and delivered by organisation.

Jose Viera, CEO of WBU, says

“We firmly believe this guide can support meaningful partnerships between OPDs and our mainstream partners at all levels – in all sectors. With this guide we want organisations across the world to practice and model the highest level of accountability to persons with disabilities and ensure that accessibility standards set down by the CRPD are met.”

David Bainbridge, Executive Director of CBM Global, says:

“We recognise that we are all on a journey when it comes to making our workplaces and operations fully accessible and inclusive of persons with disabilities. We are committed to this journey and to do so in close partnership with Organisations of Persons with Disabilities, in order to see an inclusive world in which all persons with disabilities enjoy their human rights and achieve their full potential.”

Accessibility GO! A Guide to Action is a resource to support the implementation, monitoring, and compliance of CBM Global’s Accessibility Policy.

Format & languages

Access the full guide in English: Accessibility GO! A Guide to Action (Accessible PDF)

World Blind Union also developed an Accessible Document Checklist, a follow-up resource to help ensure that the important aspects of accessible document design are considered.

We will shortly publish the guide in French, Spanish, Arabic, and in Easy-Read forma.

Main image: Facilitators leading a group activity for children at an inclusive Child Friendly Space in a refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh © CBM/Hayduk.

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