How businesses can help create a more disability-inclusive society

While working for one of the country's prominent telecom companies, our marketing team produced a brilliant thematic TV commercial that showed a group of kids constructing a ramp for one of their friends who could not join their afternoon frolic due to disability. It created a big buzz at that time.

But right after the video aired, our CSR (corporate social responsibility) team asked the management, "do we have accessibility for persons with disabilities in our offices or customer service centres?"

The management quickly sought assistance from an NGO to determine whether they might be able to construct similar ramps on the bases. The outcome turned out to be not so encouraging. The length required to build a ramp retaining the standard necessary incline was not practical at Dhaka's headquarters and customer touchpoints.

Offering people living with disabilities access to areas we can conveniently go to is never something we, as building owners and urban planners, considered doing. Even a decade after this experience, the city has yet to become disability-friendly.

Understanding disability

When we think of disability, we predominantly think of someone in a wheelchair or holding a white cane and wearing spectacles, or a child with autism, commonly referred to as a special child.

Would you believe it if I told you that there are more than 20 different types of disabilities? And many of them are invisible. Inattentiveness in the classroom and learning difficulties (e.g., dyslexia) are both types of disabilities. Remember the Bollywood flick "Taare Zameen Par"?

Experts have identified many varieties of disabilities, including vision impairment, hearing impairment, mental health issues, intellectual disability, acquired brain damage, autism, physical disability, speech difficulties, dwarfism, acid attack survivors, Alzheimer's and more.

We must understand how to appropriately address disability. We should not refer to someone as disabled, handicapped or a person with special needs but rather as "persons living with a disability" or "persons with a disability" (PWDs). 

In Bangla, it's simply "Protibondhi." Depending on their kind, some disabilities can be treated and cured; however, most require particular assistance and support. We must remember that these people need empathy and compassion instead of pity or kindness.

Current situation

According to current World Health Organisation (WHO) figures, an estimated 1.3 billion people have a significant disability, accounting for 16% of the global population—that is, one in every six of us.

Bangladesh's government was one of the early signatories to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It strengthened its commitment further by enacting the Rights and Protection of Persons with Disabilities Act 2013 (RPPDA), which repealed the previous Disability Welfare Act of 2001. 

Subsequently, the Government of Bangladesh formulated the Rights and Protection of Persons with Disabilities Rules in 2015 to clarify the 2013 Act further.

According to the RPPDA, 2.80% of our population has disabilities—over 4.7 million Bangladeshis. Around 2.89% are in rural areas, while 2.45% are in urban regions. However, the WHO suggests that at least 10-15% of our citizens have disabilities.

Creating a more disability-inclusive society

No single country provides total accessibility to persons with disabilities (i.e., PWDs). Sweden is often considered one of the most disability-friendly countries. Their government has enacted legislation and regulations ensuring that public spaces are accessible to people with all types of disabilities, not just physical fetters. 

Stockholm's accessibility database offers information on over 8,000 accessible spots, ranging from businesses to outdoor areas, making traversing the city more accessible for PWDs. Their buildings offer ramp access, cafes have accessible restrooms, and the best places to enjoy the city's breathtaking views have few or no barriers.

While there are numerous initiatives for disability inclusion from the government and NGOs in Bangladesh, businesses can also play a significant role in creating a disability-inclusive society.

Many corporations now employ PWDs in their CSR efforts. This move aims to enhance workplace diversity and inclusion (i.e., D&I) and improve their ESG (i.e., environment, social, and governance) reports. 

In 2022, the Bangladeshi government took a significant step towards inclusivity by announcing rebates for employers who hire physically challenged and third-gender individuals. This policy is a crucial initiative that can help create a more disability-inclusive workforce.

However, implementing such a policy can be challenging for most businesses, as they must renovate their premises and facilities to accommodate these co-workers. To address this issue, the private sector may lobby the government to consider providing rebates for the expenses incurred in improving facilities to accommodate persons with different disabilities.

Organisations can support PWDs by hiring them and collaborating with NGOs to fund entrepreneurial development programmes. This partnership will enable PWDs to engage in income-generating activities (i.e., IGAs). 

For instance, some organisations have created special instruments that PWDs can use to produce plates, spoons and trays made of betel nut tree leaves from the comfort of their homes. These organisations export these products to other countries and sell them in the local hospitality industry, helping PWDs engage in IGAs and become self-sustainable. Corporations can fund such projects and buy the products for their workplace consumption.

Firms must consider enhancing their cultural aspects and treating all co-workers with dignity and respect, regardless of their abilities. Imagine having someone with a disability in charge of the organisation's culture and employee engagement function; the company can benefit from their first-hand experience to advocate for policies and initiatives to make the workplace and surrounding community more accessible, disability-friendly, inclusive, and disability-aware.

With the percentage of persons with physical disabilities increasing in the country, improving wheelchair accessibility is crucial to creating a more disability-inclusive environment. Organisations can explore alternative ways to create space-efficient accessibility, such as by installing wheelchair lifts. The transport sector, i.e., buses, may make their bus terminals and bus stops accessible, too. The metro rail is an excellent example in this regard.

Organisations could also arrange special training to teach their co-workers sign language and braille and how to treat someone with a disability with empathy and respect. This would enable them to reach a new segment of customers (i.e., PWDs) and offer them direct access to products or services. Organisations may also make their service forms, websites, stores, shops, customer care centres, call centres, and products more accessible to PWDs.

To conclude, various organisations, including the government, NGOs, and the private sector, are working towards disability inclusion, but they operate independently. To make a more significant impact, we must establish a more comprehensive platform that brings all public and private organisations together. This will help us identify steps and scale-up solutions to make society more disability-inclusive.

Businesses play a vital role in shaping our national growth, and it's time for them to step up and take action. By fostering more coordinated and effective partnerships to make society more accessible and disability-inclusive, we can create a brighter and more enriching future for everyone.

Shafiq R Bhuiyan is a senior manager of communication and CSR at BRAC Bank PLC.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of The Business Standard.