Barrier-free Environment

The barrier-free environment is a social norm within which everyone is accepted, respected and valued regardless of origin, sex, age, physical peculiarities, employment, other peculiarities and individual characteristics, and interests of all the social groups, including minor ones, are considered by the authorities, businesses and communities in decision making.

Introduction of the barrier-free environment in Ukraine is provided for by the National Strategy for Creating a Barrier-Free Environment in Ukraine until 2030, approved by Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 366-р of 14 April 2021.

The National Strategy was developed as a part of the initiative of First Lady Olena Zelenska “Barrier-Free” and in pursuance of the Decree of the President of Ukraine. It has been developed for the period until 2030 and offers a holistic approach to the principles of the barrier-free environment for all the social groups and the elderly. The Strategy provides for equal rights and opportunities for everyone in self-fulfilment, employment, movement, services, education, communication, leisure, and development.

The purpose of the barrier-free environment is to eliminate barriers in six principal directions: physical, social, economic, educational, digital and information one.

In pursuance of the National Strategy for Creating a Barrier-Free Environment in Ukraine until 2030, the Ministry of Social Policy is implementing two leading projects:

• improvement of the system for providing rehabilitation and assistive products as a tool for post-trauma comfortable life;
• service “Early childhood intervention”, i.e. assistance to the young parents whose child has disorders or a risk thereof.

Additional programmes and services to develop the barrier-free environment:

• the updated service of the municipal nanny has been launched to enable parents of children with disabilities and IDP parents to hire a babysitter at the expense of the State so that their free time will be spent to find a job, to be retrained or to satisfy their basic needs;
• introduction of the service of assisted living based on the money follows the person principle when a recipient of the social service is free to select the provider, to pay for his or her work from the special account, and manage his or her own life;
• work with the Active Longevity Strategy when older people can remain socially active and involved into social and economic life with no ageism.

Digital Barrier-Free Environment of the Ministry of Social Policy

The digital solutions are being implemented for important documents, payments or services.

The main task of the MSP in development of the barrier-free environment is to ensure equal conditions for everyone so that a person in a difficult life situation can manage his or her life, get necessary assistance and support.

Barrier-Free Guide

The Barrier-Free Guide is a guide on adequate communication that contains new rules of the barrier-free language. It has been initiated by First Lady Olena Zelenska in cooperation with Barrier-Free NGO, other civil society organizations, human rights defenders, psychologists, parents raising children with disabilities, and Ukrainian and international experts.

The Ukrainian society has a number of restrictions for different groups in barrier-free access to the infrastructure, transport, employment, education, receipt of public information, state and business services etc.

The new course at Diia.Digital Education tells the viewers about the main principles of the barrier-free environment at the example of daily life situations. On 21 December 2021, the Ministry of Digital Transformation presented the new educational course “Barrier-Free Literacy”.

What is the course about?

• what the barrier-free environment is
• what creates barriers
• who the barrier-free environment is for
• why bias and prejudice should be avoided
• whether the Ukrainians are ready to overcome barriers
• why we as the society need the barrier-free environment
• why the barrier-free environment is a joint task

The course is available for free at Diia.Digital Education

The course of the Ministry of Digital Transformation has been developed as a part of the initiative of First Lady Olena Zelenska in partnership with the Advisor - Presidential Commissioner for Barrier-Free Environment, Barrier-Free NGO, representatives of the civil society and experts with the support of the UNDP project “Human Rights of Ukraine”, which is funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark.