Scoping Research Report on Assistive Technology - On The Road For Universal Assistive Technology Coverage

Over one billion people – largely disabled people and older people – are currently in need of Assistive Technology (AT). By 2050, this number is predicted to double. Despite the proven advantages of AT for disabled and older people, their families, and society, there is still a vast and stubborn gap between the need and the supply; currently only 10% of those who need AT currently have access to it. This Scoping Research Report on Assistive Technology (AT) seeks to unpick and understand the multi-layered and multifaceted ways in which economic, social, and political factors interplay and interact to create barriers to AT for those who need it the most. Through primary and secondary research, they explore the current landscape, the limitations, and current initiatives, ultimately answering the question: “How best should a target intervention around AT sphere affect positive change for poor, disabled and older people in Global South priority countries?”. To understand this question, the research team asked two specific questions: What are the barriers which prevent access to AT for the people that need it, with a focus on those living in low resource settings within DFID priority Global South countries? How should DFID, in partnership with others best direct its intervention toward overcoming these barriers? The work reveals that, while levels of AT market development vary across countries, key barriers are common. These barriers can be classified into 5 main categories related to both supply and demand factors and across the 5Ps of People, Products, Provision, Personnel, and Policy. This work is part of the ‘Frontier Technology Livestreaming’ programm

Future bathroom: A study of user-centred design principles affecting usability, safety and satisfaction in bathrooms for people living with disabilities

Research and development work relating to assistive technology 2010-11 (Department of Health) Presented to Parliament pursuant to Section 22 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 197

How does access to Assistive Technology mediate recourse to Disability Justice for urban poor people? A study centring the experiences of disabled slum dwellers in Freetown, Sierra Leone

This thesis addresses the central question of the role of Assistive Technology (AT) in mediating recourse to disability justice, centring the experiences of disabled slum dwellers in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Taking evidence from six datasets collected across four years, the study maps the local experience to the national and global picture offering a strategic reflection on the current state of work in the sector. The evidence from Sierra Leone (SL) reveals that quality AT is missing for almost all poor, disabled people. A novel finding from the research is that the lack of AT is most apparent for those who live in mainstream mixed urban settlements where disability identity is stigmatised and often hidden. Disabled people living together in an autonomously-organised settlement did – mostly - have AT, indicating further investigation into the role of collective action and autonomous organisation would be fruitful. Picking up themes emerging from the SL evidence globally, the study reveals that the AT interventions of core actors do not align with a single common operational framework. Borrowing from Amartya Sen’s seminal provocation Equality of What? (Sen, 1980), AT for what? becomes a pertinent question in the face of this dissensus. The study finds that the provision of AT within an operational framework of Disability Justice would better ensure the needs and aspirations of poor disabled people were prioritised in investment and priority setting. The thesis proposes, and tests, the potential configuration of a disability justice framework, as a basis future work can build from. Taken as a whole, the evidence presented in this study suggests that the claims for disability justice (including access to AT) of urban poor disabled people are often subjugated to background conditions, sitting behind the life-and-death claims for the basic need of life for the whole community (water, shelter, food). Therefore, any framework for disability justice must itself be linked to a broader push for justice for all poor people to be meaningful and impactful. Similarly, any broad social justice movement should place disability justice at its heart if it intends to drive for progressive change that benefits all. Finally, this study finds that AT is more than a commonplace element of the struggle for justice due to its fundamental necessity as an enabler of participation. The evidence suggests that AT can be viewed as a transitional demand of Disability Justice

Assistive Technologies in Developing Countries

Assistive technologies enable people to live healthy, productive, independent and dignified lives, yet most people who need them are currently unable to access them. This rapid review looks at examples of existing literature on the availability of assistive technologies and efforts to make these technologies more affordable and accessible in developing countries

Accessibility of E-government Services for Persons with Disabilities in Developing Countries- The Case of Ghana

Several benefits have been attributed to E-government, including the potential to promote independence and belongingness for persons with disabilities (PWD) by enhancing participatory and inclusive governance. Hitherto, government services that required several and long journeys followed by long queues waiting for service at government offices can now be accessed online irrespective of the geographical location via E-government services. As a result, developing countries like Ghana continue to commit resources to the implementation of E-government to harness the associated benefits. Accessibility has been acknowledged, by both practitioners and those in academia, as a key consideration to prevent disparities among citizens which may put PWD at risk of exclusion. However, providing solutions to accessibility challenges for PWD has consistently proven difficult in most E-government implementation projects in developing countries. Therefore, this study investigates the accessibility of Egovernment services for PWD in Ghana with the aim of identifying how key E-government stakeholders perceive accessibility and the contextual drivers that lead to the exclusion of PWD in the development of E-government services. Also, this study seeks to understand if and how these stakeholders and contextual drivers reinforce the exclusionary process. The study employed an interpretive, inductive approach, with sensitising concepts from Egovernment accessibility literature, and the social exclusion framework. Multiple data collection methods were used, namely; observations as a preliminary step to obtaining a better understanding of how the visually impaired use ICTs; interviews as the primary data collection technique from 37 participants; and document analysis. The study involved 3 groups of participants: the visually impaired, E-government web developers and government officers. Data analysis was carried out in two phases- firstly thematic analysis was used to report on perceptions of government officers and developers on accessibility and the experiences of PWD. Contextual drivers impeding accessibility and affecting accessibility experience of PWD were also derived from the thematic analysis. Secondly, E-government and disability policy documents mentioned in interview discussions were analysed using content analysis. The findings of the content analysis were used to validate, clarify and to conduct post-interview checking. The findings show that government officers and developers play a key role in the development of E-government services. Whilst Government officers and developers were identified as powerful agents whose practices determined the accessibility of services that were developed; PWD were side-lined and not involved in the E-government development project. Also, perceptions of government officers and developers on accessibility vary from those of PWD. While government officers and developers believe that with little assistance from third parties PWD can access E-government services, PWD perceive accessibility should offer them the independence to retrieve government information and engage in electronic transactions of their choice. Evidently, accessibility perceptions of E-government implementers differ from that of PWD. Further, the findings show that exclusion of PWD from E-government services is as a result of the intertwining of several contextual drivers, including political, socio-cultural, technological and personal. Political, socio-cultural and technological drivers influence the perceptions and practices of government officers and developers and determine their responses to the accessibility needs of PWD. Personal drivers limit the capabilities of PWD to access Egovernment services and impact on their accessibility experiences. Contextual drivers independently facilitate the exclusion of PWD; however, their interactions with government officers and developers shape their perceptions and constitute crucial exclusionary forces. These exclusionary forces when fed into the development of E-government services reinforce the exclusion of PWD. Given that personal drivers limit the capabilities of PWD, their inabilities to act as change agents reinforce their exclusion. Moreover, power differentials among stakeholders play a vital role in the exclusionary process. The study contributes to better understanding of influences on the E-government development process, how services become inaccessible and the accessibility challenges PWD face. Practically, the study has several implications on the development and implementation of E-government services in developing countries like Ghana. For example, the findings are useful to inform the political leadership on policies and structures to put in place to enhance the accessibility of Egovernment services for PWD

Not just the right for a wheelchair but the right wheelchair: a multi-site study of the wheelchair public service provision in Belo Horizonte city, Brazil

For decades the care of disabled population in Brazil has been neglected by the government and was provided largely by the charitable institutions. It was as only recently, as in the year 2011 that Brazilian government created the national plan for the rights of the disabled people. The plan articulates policies regarding social inclusion, access to education, accessibility and health care. The last section of the plan includes the provision of wheelchairs free of cost to the Brazilians citizens, who are in need of a wheelchair. It is common knowledge that a wrong wheelchair specification can lead to physical damage for the user and the carer; the abandonment of device, and wastage of time and resources involved in the wheelchair provision. The World Health Organization has propounded several good practices and training material with reference to wheelchair services towards enabling of right wheelchair fit to the user characteristics. Though, there is no evidence that the service provided in Brazil adheres to these guidelines or any other wheelchair service good practice. This research reviews the wheelchair service provision in Belo Horizonte city, Brazil with the aim to understand the functionality of these services in order to provide context-specific interventions and recommendations to improve the design of current services. Herein, three main studies were conducted using a mix of methods: A first exploratory study was conducted to assess the Belo Horizonte assistive technology services and identify a research focus. A second study was conducted to develop an in-depth insight on the understanding of the wheelchair service provided and to collect the necessary information towards creating a context-based and collaborative designed intervention. A third study was conducted to evaluate and improve the proposed interventions. A total of sixty-six interviews were conducted (n=66) with service stakeholders and two hundred and fifty user care observed (n=250) from which ninety-five (n=95) tested the proposed interventions

An implementation evaluation of light for the world´s inclusive education programme in Ethiopia

Inclusive education programmes aim to include children with disabilities in mainstream schools by providing quality education in a barrier-free environment. These programmes are especially necessary in developing countries, where about one-third of all children have some sort of disability. Sustainable Development Goal 4 of education for all cannot be reached when these children are left out from schooling. The following dissertation presents the findings of an implementation evaluation of an inclusive education programme in Ethiopia. The programme, One Class for All (OCFA), is financed by Light for the World, an international non-government organization (NGO), and implemented by 14 Ethiopian partner organisations. A descriptive evaluation design combining qualitative and quantitative elements was used to examine typical Light for the World programmes as delivered by partners and as they appear on the ground. The data collection mainly involved interviews of partners and participants at selected schools in Ethiopia and a survey of all implementing partners. The evaluation indicated that the composition of implementing partners and their capacity in terms of content knowledge and collaborations are working well. We nevertheless highlight some high-level opportunities to improve the inclusive education programme of Light for the World. More structured development plans for each school are required, and a better connection between Light for the World`s community-based-rehabilitation (CBR) programmes and its inclusive education programmes is necessary to support entry to school for persons with disabilities. Under these overall findings, a more structured teacher training programme, better selection of teachers, and better local networking and targeted awareness raising programmes are also needed. This evaluation contributes to the limited literature on successful inclusive education programmes in developing countries

Inclusive Employment for Persons with Disabilities Post COVID-19 in Egypt: Digitization as the Way Forward

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on businesses and jobs whereas many employees were furloughed and laid off. While the global pandemic had a significant negative impact worldwide, it presented a unique opportunity to revolutionize employment for persons with disabilities. Employers’ willingness to rapidly adapt to the changing work environment by transitioning businesses to remote work and flexible working schedules can facilitate an inclusive work environment for persons with disabilities, especially in communities that also face significant geographical barriers to access employment. The aim of this study is to understand the underlying challenges facing persons with disabilities in the workforce, and explore the extent COVID-19 pandemic can reshape and create new employment opportunities for people with disabilities in Egypt with the current emphasis given to digital jobs and technology. A qualitative research in the form of in-depth interviews were conducted with 9 specialists in the field of disability inclusion in Egypt and developing countries from diverse national and international professional affiliations. The research findings indicate that there is a unique opportunity that digital jobs can offer, with a potential to overcome barriers that threaten the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the workforce and exacerbate the existing inequities and disparities that existed before COVID-19. Investing in digital technology, accessibility and skills can transform the future of work for persons of disability by introducing a new era of digital employment