COVID-19

This illustration, created at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Illustration by CDC/ Alissa Eckert, MS; Dan Higgins, MAM – This media comes from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Public Health Image Library (PHIL) (https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=86444014)


Advocating for Accessible and Inclusive COVID-19 Global Response

Introduction 

The outbreak of the Corona Virus (COVID-19) caused some of the most unprecedented challenges in modern times which impacted the daily lives of people and transformed the society as we know it. Persons who are blind or partially sighted, among persons with disabilities are at high risk of being directly affected by such pandemic and global emergencies. Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Blind Union developed a variety of initiatives to identify the impact and challenges faced by blind and partially sighted persons and to advocate for inclusive responses.

The objectives of the initiatives are:

  • To support blind and partially sighted persons worldwide to engage in peer-to-peer  exchange of experiences and learning on how to cope with the pandemic.
  • To advocate for accessible and inclusive information and practical resources to cope with the pandemic and post-pandemic situation.
  • To promote and protect the rights and opportunities of blind and partially sighted persons at all levels.

Initiatives

The following are some of the initiatives undertaken by the WBU to address the pandemic:

  1. COVID-19 Global Report:  WBU produced a global report titled “COVID-19: AMPLIFYING VOICES: OUR LIVES, OUR SAY”. The report examines the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on persons who are blind and partially sighted worldwide. The main objective of the study was to listen to the voices of blind and partially sighted people and support their COVID-19 advocacy efforts for inclusive response. 853 people participated in the study and shared their experiences on how the pandemic affected their lives personally. The report is available in various languages and accessible formats.  Read more
  2. Call to Action, comprised of 19 actions urging for inclusive Covid-19 response was disseminated worldwide. The actions are in line with recommendations by other Organisations of Persons with Disabilities (DPOs) and reflect the urgent needs of the WBU’s constituency. WBU recognises the diversity of needs among persons with disabilities, especially in times of crises, and urges governments and relevant stakeholders to adopt inclusive approaches to “leave no-one behind”. Read more
  3. COVID-19 Survey was developed to identify challenges faced by blind and partially sighted persons during the ongoing pandemic. WBU is undertaking this survey to understand how best to advocate for blind and partially sighted persons to ensure that COVID-19 response strategies are inclusive and accessible. Read the survey report
  4. Facebook Live Sessions on a variety of topics were conducted advocate for inclusive COVID-19 response. View the Video recordings
  5. WBU also launched a special web page for COVID-19 resources. We encourage our members to use these resources for the advocacy initiatives. We encourage you to share any resources you may have as well as personal stories and experiences of the Pandemic.  Read more

Campaigns

Accessibility Campaign – COVID19

WBU is part of the IDA-IDDC Accessibility campaign to call for public health information and communications around COVID19 to be fully accessible. Join the campaign

Resources

As the Corona Virus (COVID-19) pandemic rages on, WBU compiled a variety of useful resources to advocate for inclusive response. Read more

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