Chongqing- Chongqing has made solid progress in building a barrier-free public environment, implementing barrier-free renovations for more than 40,000 families with disabilities, according to the meeting on the protection of the people with disability held by the Standing Committee of the Chongqing Municipal People’s Congress on April 18.
There are 10,991 kilometers of sidewalks with blind roads, 252 overpasses, and 117 underpasses equipped with elevators in Chongqing.
Furthermore, 4,132 newly built and renovated public toilets are equipped with spaces for people with disability, and 6,782 parking lots are equipped with parking spaces for people with a disability according to the standard.
Chongqing's barrier-free public environment construction. (iChongqing/ Vivian Yan)
Disability prevention services
Chongqing has also actively established and improved the disability prevention service system, fully implemented the tertiary prevention and control strategy covering the whole life cycle of the population, and carried out pilot work in comprehensive pilot areas for disability prevention in six districts and counties.
Tertiary prevention aims to soften the impact of long-term disease and disability by eliminating or reducing impairment, disability, and handicap; minimizing suffering; and maximizing potential years or useful life. Tertiary prevention is the task of treatment for late symptomatic disease and rehabilitation.
At present, Chongqing is promoting the construction of Chongqing Municipal Disabled Rehabilitation Centers and 21 district and county-level disabled rehabilitation centers. There are also 173 designated rehabilitation and assistance institutions of 308 types for children with disabilities.
Previously, the Rehabilitation Hospital Affiliated to Chongqing Medical University announced that the first phase project of the Chongqing Municipal Disabled Rehabilitation Center and the Rehabilitation Hospital Affiliated to Chongqing Medical University is about to enter the indoor decoration stage and is expected to be officially put into use at the end of this year.
Special education
Protecting the rights of people with disability to receive education in accordance with the law, Chongqing has established the Chongqing Special Education Expert Committee, Chongqing Municipal Special Education Resource Center, dour district Special Education Development Guidance Centers, and 32 Special Education Resource Centers.
At present, there are 40 special education schools in Chongqing and 2,965 regular schools providing compulsory education with regular classes. The enrollment rate of school-age children people with disability in compulsory education has reached 97.44%.
The enrollment rate of school-age children people with disability. (iChongqing/ Vivian Yan)
At the same time, in view of the characteristics of the mountainous city in Chongqing, 13,180 ramps and 1,602 handrails were set up in areas with steep slopes and inconvenient for wheelchairs to access.
By the end of this year, the city plans to complete the task of improving the quality of 1,500 kilometers of sidewalks, solving the problems of impractical, uncomfortable, unsafe, and unsightly, and barrier-free facilities will be further improved and standardized.
An overview of the city of Chongqing up to the Nanshan mountain. (iChongqing/ Vivian Yan)
(Wang Lu, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)