What Is the Secret Behind Nowon-gu Becoming a 'Disabled-Friendly City'?

This Year, 7.59 Billion Won Budget Invested in 3 Sectors and 41 Detailed Projects... Developing Tailored Policies Reflecting Disabled People's Needs Through Living Condition Surveys... Accelerating Creation of Disabled-Friendly City Including Economic Independence, Mobility Rights, and Disability Awareness Improvement with Nation's First Disabled Job Support Center 'Nowon-gu Disabled Job Support Center'

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Nowon-gu (District Mayor Oh Seung-rok) is focusing its administrative capabilities on creating a disabled-friendly city.

As of 2020, Nowon-gu has about 27,000 registered disabled persons, making it the second largest district in Seoul in terms of disabled population. This is why the district must devote great effort to implementing policies tailored to the needs of disabled people so that they can live together with non-disabled people.

The district announced that it is implementing a total of 41 detailed projects in three areas by investing 7.59 billion KRW in this year’s budget: ▲ customized support responding to various needs ▲ strengthening the guarantee of mobility rights for the disabled ▲ improving awareness of disabilities.

First, from November 2018 for three months, a survey was conducted to carefully identify the needs and difficulties in daily life of disabled persons, and various policy tasks began to be discovered. Since then, to establish a comprehensive plan and systematically manage projects, the ‘Disabled-Friendly City Team’ was newly established within the Department of Welfare for the Disabled, and the ‘Advisory Committee for Creating a Disabled-Friendly City’ involving experts has been organized and operated.

A key project is the ‘Nowon-gu Disabled Job Support Center,’ the first dedicated institution for disabled employment among local governments nationwide.

Economic independence is essential for disabled persons to establish themselves as proud members of society. The center, directly operated by the district, serves as a hub institution providing integrated services related to employment by linking customized jobs according to the type of disability and building networks with related organizations.

Since its opening in January, 117 disabled persons have been confirmed for public jobs, and employment connections and follow-up guidance are being provided at movie theaters, schools, and hospitals.

In October this year, a job fair involving related organizations and private companies will be held to create productive jobs.

Additionally, programs such as the forest trail exploration program ‘Meeting with the Forest,’ ‘Jungnangcheon Water Park Water Play,’ and the indoor play space ‘Hagye Raonatti’ for children with disabilities are also evaluated as customized projects that faithfully respond to the leisure needs of disabled persons.

Projects to guarantee mobility rights for the disabled are also being expanded throughout the region. The current state of the walking environment for the disabled is being closely examined, and continuous maintenance such as the installation of safety guidance blocks is being promoted.

In particular, sidewalks around welfare centers frequently visited by disabled persons, subway stations that are key to mobility rights, and cultural facilities are being intensively improved to enhance effectiveness.

This year, full support for the installation costs of customized ramps will be provided to small-scale, daily life-oriented facilities such as convenience stores, cafes, and pharmacies so that wheelchair users can comfortably access them.

Projects to ensure that the guarantee of mobility rights leads to ‘healing’ are also receiving great responses. These include the ‘Barrier-Free Forest Trails’ created on major local walking paths such as Bulamsan, Suraksan, and Yeongchuksan Mountains. Gentle wooden deck paths have been installed so that people with walking difficulties and disabled persons using electric wheelchairs can enjoy the natural scenery.

In particular, the Barrier-Free Forest Trail on Yeongchuksan in Wolgye-dong reaches the mountain summit, and an elevator for disabled persons has been installed at the Bulamsan Healing Town observatory, attracting continuous visits from disabled persons.

Efforts to improve awareness among non-disabled people are also underway. Encouraging name changes to remove discriminatory elements from welfare facilities for the disabled is part of this. To prevent human rights violations at welfare facilities closely related to disabled persons, human rights education for facility workers and efforts to improve treatment through meetings with workers are being conducted simultaneously.

Meeting directly with facility workers to hear their opinions and producing a ‘Human Rights Violation Prevention Response Manual’ through expert consultation are also achievements. In May, district office officials collectively watched the film ‘School Road’ to improve awareness of disabilities, fostering sensitivity and raising consciousness.

Oh Seung-rok, Mayor of Nowon-gu, said, “Knowing exactly what disabled persons and their families need is the beginning of solving problems,” adding, “We will carefully ensure that disabled persons and their families are not marginalized in all future projects.”

Contact: Department of Welfare for the Disabled

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.