Assistive Technology: assessing and building capacity to deliver for persons with disabilities (COSP19 Side Event)

A very good afternoon, colleagues. I gather from the noise in the room that you are either very upset with missing lunch or you are happy to be here. I hope it's the second. It's my pleasure to welcome you here. I am the representative of the World Health Organization to the United Nations, and I will be moderating the event today. I'd like to thank all the panelists in advance for what I believe will be very insightful and important contributions they will be making. Just a few short remarks from my side. From the WHO's perspective, assistive technology is central to the human rights agenda, but it is also a development issue. This is a topic which speaks to equality, participation, dignity and independence of people. It can make a difference, obviously, between exclusion and participation, whether it's in education, employment or engagement in communities. And we know the needs are growing. You will hear later about the more than two and a half billion people in the world that still need access to assistive technology and that the needs are great. There is a lot of progress being made and you will hear it from the countries that are going to speak just in a little while. And I think what we will learn from each other is that much of this progress, even if it's not the same everywhere, contain lessons we can learn from one another and apply in our own settings. We will also hear a bit more about the assistive technology data toolkit that WHO has launched, as well as the GATE 5P framework, which stands for people, policy, products, provision and personnel. It's also important, I think, to hear from you, because the involvement and inclusion of persons with disabilities and lived experiences are something that we always feel are extremely important. So without further ado, I would like to turn to my right, the Minister of State for Disability in the Department of Children, Disability and Equality in Ireland, Emer Higgins. We have a very strong relationship with Ireland actually in this area and many other areas, and I want to acknowledge and appreciate that strong support for WHO, also in our humanitarian work, which, as you know, with the Ebola outbreak is much in the news these days. And maybe just a little bit of a promotion for Ireland. I believe next year Dublin will host a very big conference on assistive technology and she will advertise it in a little while.

Thank you so much, Werner. And I would just like to thank the Irish Permanent Mission here to the UN and the WHO for bringing us all together and organizing this side event. I was just speaking to Catherine beforehand and she mentioned that this has been a particularly good week here this week, and I absolutely concur. It's actually my first time representing Ireland here for the UNCRPD, and I have to say it's been a real learning opportunity for me. I am joined in the Irish delegation by my officials from government, by my Arachtas colleagues, our members of parliament who have travelled to be here, and a number of our disability organisations and indeed those with lived experience. That brings to life the ethos of what this week is all about. It's really good to be here because I think we have in this room a lot of people who truly understand the role that assistive technology can play when it comes to advancing human rights, when it comes to advancing dignity, and that's across the board, but it's particularly so when we speak about people with disabilities. As Werner has mentioned, Ireland and the WHO have collaborated in this space. We recently conducted an assistive technology capacity assessment. I suppose this was an opportunity for us to look at how assistive technology is helping to change the landscape and also how we need to do more to make it more accessible and to make it more equity when it comes to access in Ireland. I'm sure that's the same in many other countries. But it also showed the opportunity, the opportunity that technology can bring, whether it's for a student who just wants to learn alongside their peers in the very same way, whether it's for a job seeker who wants a fair chance to compete, wants a fair chance to be able to contribute, whether it's just for an individual who wants more independence in their day-to-day lives, or an older person who wants to stay connected, and these I suppose are just examples of how technology can be used to enable people to live the lives that they want to live. Too often, people's talents, people's ambitions and people's choices are limited. And they're not limited by their disability or by an illness or by age. They're limited by barriers that society puts in their way. barriers that all of us here in this room want to work together to remove, whether that's a barrier to mobility, to communication, to just being able to access an environment that you feel safe, comfortable and confident in. And that's exactly what the UNCRPD sets out to change. And assistive technology is a tool that we can use to help us achieve that change. We are living through a period of really rapid technological advancements. We know that there's been advancements in digital tools. We know that AI is transforming an awful lot of society and ways of work. Smart design and smart devices are having huge impacts. But all of these things also offer opportunity. They're new possibilities and they're new possibilities and new opportunities that were totally unimaginable just a few short years ago. And I think that each of us, Each of us here and each of our nations now have the opportunity to use those innovations to create a more accessible, more fair and a more inclusive society. But to achieve that, we're going to need to work together, we're going to need to plan ahead, we're going to need to invest wisely, and we're going to need to embed access and inclusion into mainstream technology policies. Because for people with disabilities, This isn't a luxury we're talking about. This is access to essential infrastructure that can break down those barriers that we spoke about, that can enable them to realize their human rights. In Ireland, we co-designed our new national human rights strategy for disabled people with disabled people, with representative organizations and with civil society. And we did that because we know that when policy is shaped by lived experience, That's when it's strongest, that's when it's powerful. And that's why we have now developed, we are now developing a new vision for disability services in Ireland and we're doing that through a consultative process. Later this year, Ireland, actually very much soon, in fact, in a couple of weeks time, Ireland will take on the EU presidency. And as part of that, we will host a global conference and an expo, as Werner has said, in relation to assistive technology. And that's born out of this collaboration we have with the WHO who've done incredible work in this sphere. We want to use it as an opportunity to showcase the potential that assistive technology offers, if it's person centered, if it's got equitable access to it, and if it uses innovative technology, we know that it can really truly have a huge impact and change people's lives, given the opportunity to live more independent and more participative lives. In the survey that we conducted and the report that we put together that was launched just last month, we heard a huge amount of feedback from families and people who had adopted assistive technology. I want to read out a very short paragraph which is a direct quote from a mother who took part in this survey. She said, "I used to wonder in the early days whether I would ever hear the words 'I love you', but I soon forgot about that and focused on supporting my daughter's communication. A couple of months ago, on a mundane Tuesday evening, I was doing the washing up when I heard those words, "I love you." And I looked at her as she pressed it again. And I rushed over and I kissed her and I told her I loved her too. And she pressed the hug button and we had the best hug. That is what assistive technology can mean to families like ours. And it's so powerful to think that that's the opportunity that technology can provide. Werner spoke about the five Ps, policies, products, provision, personnel. That's what it looks like when those five Ps are brought off the page and brought into real life. And experiences like this remind us that it's not about systems, it's not about services, it's just about people, it's about relationships, and it's about those everyday moments that every family should have. It's about giving a child a voice, it's about giving a parent a connection, it's about giving families new possibilities. And as we move forward, we now have to match this impact with collective ambition. We know there are huge gaps, we know there is a long road to go to make this technology truly accessible to people who need it. But we have to be determined to achieve that. And I really look forward to working with member states to make it happen because we need to ensure that assistive technology isn't a privilege for some, that it's a right for everyone to enjoy. Thank.

You very much, Amir. Earlier today, I was moderating another meeting in this building where we spoke about the need focusing assistive technology across sectors, not only the health sector, but also employment, education, social development, disability planning and such. And part of the conversation we had was the need to focus especially on women and older persons, which are often left further behind. And as populations age, the requirements that are needed for vision loss, hearing loss become more and more acute and are underfunded and undersupplied. So I want to try now to ask these difficult questions of my sister from the same continent I'm from, the Deputy Minister for Community Development, Gender, Women and Special Groups, that is a very big portfolio, in the United Republic of Tanzania, Minister Mary Priska Mahundi. If you can tell us a bit more about the assessments you've done in Tanzania and how you are addressing the needs of persons with disabilities.

Thank you, Mr. Moderator, Ambassador Afago Maithem. Excellencies, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon. One of the greatest barrier we face in delivery of rehabilitation services, including provision of assistive technology, is the shortage of trained personnel. The Ministry of Health of the United Republic of Tanzania, in collaboration with the World Health Organization, And the Health World International Tanzania conducted a one year demonstration project in training Nani Rehabilitation staff, primary healthcare staffs on assistive product in 2022 and 2023. We utilized the WHO training in assistive products platform. The most profound reflection from the project is the successful shift from the specialist-led model in delivery of assistive products to primary care integrated model. In Tanzania, through this demonstration project, a total of 183 non-community health workers were trained. The project proved that frontline staff can Effectively identify needs and provide simple assistive products like walking sticks or elbow clutches if given the right skill and tools. The project utilized the WHO training in the assistive products platform, which combined online modules with the in-person mentorship. The project revealed that most health workers now own smartphones, a situation which denotes that online learning is not just possible, but highly resource efficient. The project included 14 local mentors who were selected from the primary health facilities. This implies that training alone is insufficient, but when engagement with the district level mentors ensured that the skills learned online were correctly applied in real world clinical settings. A total of 14,783 assistive products were distributed in primary healthcare facilities. The AT were for mobility, self-care, visions and cognition. The project contributed to an increase in the number of healthcare staffs actively involved in AT provision post-training, especially of AT health centers. One of the most critical reflections is the establishment of community to hospital referral pathway. The project mapped out exactly what patient goes from community identification to primary health facility for simple products or to district hospital for complex needs. This was made possible through use of community health workers. Tanzania has developed national assistive technology strategy of 2024, 2027, and priority list of assistive products in 2025 and submitted in the medical store department. In closing, the journey towards full inclusion requires more than just the political will. It requires technical capacity and localized delivery systems. The pilot project taught us that we do not need specialists in every village to start changing lives. We need trained frontline workers, a robust digital learning tool like TAP, and a clear referral map. This success is no longer just a pilot. It is the blueprint for the rest of Tanzania. Thank you for listening.

Thank you very much, Mari Priska. I am now going to turn to Uzbekistan, the permanent representative and ambassador here, Ulugbek Lapasov, whom I know very well for other reasons, including collaborating on childhood cancer and other health initiatives. and a big champion for the health agenda here in New York. And your country also recently did an assessment on system technology capacity. Please tell us a bit about how you are progressing.

Excellencies, dear colleagues. Thank you for your question. At the outset, I would like to express our sincere appreciation to Ireland to WHO, the International Disability Alliance and all co-organizers for convening this timely discussion. Warm welcome to His Excellency Ms. Higgins, Minister of State of Ireland to New York. Uzbekistan attaches great importance to assistive technology because It's not only a health or social protection issue. It's a matter of dignity, independence, and real participation in society. As you rightly noted, Uzbekistan has recently conducted the Assistive Technology Capacity Assessment, or ATAC, with support of WHO. For us, this process has been more than a technical assessment. It has helped us look at the national assistive technology system as a whole and better understand where coordination, service delivery and workforce development need to be strengthened. The ATAC process was particularly useful because assistive technology cannot be the responsibility of one institution alone. It requires cooperation between health, social protection, finance, education, employment, local authorities, service providers and organizations of persons with disabilities. In this regard, the framework used by WHO has been helpful in looking at policy, products, provision, personnel and people as interconnected elements of one system. This approach is important for moving from separate interventions toward a more coordinated and person-centered model. I would like to focus on two areas highlighted in your questions, especially service delivery and workforce. On service delivery, the assessment confirms that access to assistive technology should not be measured only by the numbers of products provided. A person-centered system requires the full service pathway, assessment, prescription, fitting, user training, maintenance, repair and follow-up. Without these elements, even a good device may not meet the real needs of the person using it. The ATAC has also confirmed the need to strengthen the service delivery standards and improve cooperation between assistive technology providers, health facilities and social services in Uzbekistan. An important role in this work is played by the National Agency for Social Protection and social service centers across the country. Their task is to bring services closer to people, identify individual needs more accurately, and connect national policy with the local implementation. This is especially important for ensuring that support is available not only in the major cities, but also at the community level, including in remote and rural areas. On workforce, the assessment has highlighted the importance of investing in qualified personnel. Assistive technology requires trained rehabilitation specialists, social workers and service providers who understand both the product and the person's functional needs, environment and daily life. Therefore, one of those backings and priorities is to strengthen trainings, integrate assistive technology into relevant professional education and build the capacities of staff working at national, regional and local levels. Another important outcome of the ATAC process is the focus on data. Available information on needs, access, barriers and outcomes is essential for planning services, allocating resources and monitoring progress. Data also helps ensure that reforms are guided not only by institutional assumptions, but by the lived experience of persons with disabilities. For Uzbekistan, this principle is fundamental. Policies should not be developed only for persons with disability, but together with them. Their experience helps us to understand what works in practice and how services can become more accessible, respectful and effective. Looking ahead, Uzbekistan sees that ATSC is a practical roadmap for further action to improve coordination, strengthen the workforce, develop service standards, expand access and ensure that assistive technology supports inclusion throughout the life course. In conclusion, I would like to reaffirm Uzbekistan's commitment to the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and to advancing inclusive social development. We stand ready to continue working with WHO, member states, the International Disability Alliance and all partners to strengthening national capacity and ensure that no one is left behind. I thank you, Mr. Varada.

For sharing the experiences of your country, I think from what I have heard, there is a lot that we can learn from what you have done with your assessment. The one area which I feel you highlighted, which is a great segue into the next speaker, is the importance of data. Because good policy needs to be underpinned by good data. Otherwise, your policy is disconnected from the people it is supposed to serve. And so let me turn to Kathrin Langespigen, who is a member of the European Parliament, to tell us if in Europe, despite all the other progresses you have made, you are actually using the data effectively.

Easy question. Dear fellow panellists, in 2021, EDF, the European Disability Forum, published a position paper about AT in the European single market and the barriers to access and benefit from AT. Back then, we are waiting for the European Commission to act and provide for possible legislation to AT obstacles in the upcoming or now strategy for persons with disabilities. Five years, so now the strategy mainly promises consultation and research. I would say we don't have a lack of numbers, we have a lack of will. This means the European Commission will ask people and organisations for their views. Studies will be carried out and this process may take several years. However, there is no guarantee to new laws will be introduced. There is no guarantee that funding, and we are talking about the European MFF, the seven-year budget. No funding will be provided. It's essential. And there's no obligation to turn the findings into action. Five years ago, EDF and we already identified the key barriers and possible actions. They may aid the discussion today and maybe someone from the Commission is listening very well. This starting point is AT market is very fragmental due to the nature of these projects. These diverse AT ecosystem pose obstacles to persons with disabilities. There are 10 key barriers. AT is not available everywhere. Different countries in Europe have different rules about AT. This can make it hard to get the technology people need. For example, in some parts of Portugal, people can get money for an accessible computer. In other parts, they cannot. AT can be expensive. Some AT costs a lot of money. This is especially true for high-tech devices. Some technology is difficult to use. Some AT products, services do not work well for users. One reason is that people with disabilities are not always involved in designing them. Technology works better when users help to design. People do not get enough information. Many people do not know what AT is available. Which AT is best for them? Where to get support? People also need help after they received AT. This support is often missing. Getting AT can take too long when it comes to the labor market, for example. The process for getting AT is often difficult. People may have to fill in many forms. They may have to wait a long time. In Belgium and Portugal people can wait more than one year. Sometimes the wait causes serious problems. For example, a person may lose a new job because they do not have the AT they need to work. Infrastructure problems, AT. need to work with other technology and services sometimes does not. For example, hearing aids can be disturbed by other devices. Some websites do not work with screen readers. Some interpreting services cannot contact emergency services. And there are language barriers. Most assistive software is only available in English. About 80 out of 100 programs do not support other languages. Discrimination and negative attitudes. People with disabilities still face discrimination. Some people do not understand assistive products and services. For example, people who use guide dogs are sometimes treated unfairly because of their dog. Unfair rules, rules to getting Rules for getting AT are different across Europe. Some rules are based only on a medical assessment, some rules depend on age, employment status, type of work, and older people may receive less support. Self-employed people may have more difficulties getting AT. And last point, people with disabilities are not involved enough. Organizations of persons with disabilities should help make decisions about AT. Often they are not included. So the recommendations from the European side make it easier to use AT across all European countries, provide clear and accessible information, create independent support, offer training in how to use and maintain, make the process of getting AT faster and simpler. Make high-tech AT more affordable. Support research into new assistive technologies. Involve persons with disabilities. People with disabilities should be involved in designing, developing and improving. This helps make sure AT meets people's real needs. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Catherine. That's quite a stark picture you've painted about what the situation is in Europe. Actually, just yesterday, I heard some representatives from Nordic countries say the same things about uneven access even within their countries. So between countries in the region, but also within countries. So it's a good thing to hear for those of us from the south that we can also share some of our successes with people in the north. And I think the other thing that struck me was how you emphasized that users should be involved in the design and decision making. And so it gives me great pleasure to turn to my left to Per Gomez. from the World Federation of the Deafblind who will address specifically this data and how it benefits access or not of people with lived experience.

Thank you. Thank you for that very important question. But before I respond, I must confess that I feel like I'm a tiny seed being planted at this table. So it is up to all of you to water it so that we can grow and learn together. Mind you, please water with caution. We wouldn't want to drown me before I finish speaking. As a young person with a disability and an individual with deaf blindness, I would like to address this from both my personal journey and the broader reality faced by many others every single day. When we discuss assistive technology, we tend to fixate solely on metrics. How much technology is out there? How many people require it? Or how many devices we have distributed? While these questions are undoubtedly important, people are not always aware that numbers do not tell the whole story. We must look at actual needs. Therefore, we must go a step further and ask, is this technology truly appropriate? Is it affordable? Does it work when needed? Can a person use it at school, at work, in their daily lives, and above all, in public and community spaces? Does it genuinely guarantee accessibility and communication, mobility, autonomy, and preparation? After all, what is the use of knowing that someone has access to a device if we do not know whether that technology is functional and actually granting them greater independence? The purpose is to help individuals with disabilities navigate from point A to point B. To better illustrate this, let us imagine a map. Statistical data is like that map. It shows us where we are, but a map does not reveal the potholes, the roadblocks, or the actual barriers along the way to truly understand the journey. You have to understand the journey. You have to ask the person walking the path every day. That is precisely what happens to us as persons with disabilities. The data claims we have the technology, but it fails to reflect our lived experience when we use it. To guarantee the data genuinely reflects the lived experience, we must ensure three key pillars. First, data collection must be accessible and intersectional. Persons with disabilities and most notably individuals with deafblindness must actively participate in surveys, interviews, evaluations, and this requires effective tailored communication methods that work for every scenario. Regrettably, we remain invisible in disability statistics today because the tools used to gather information are not simply accessible to us. Second, the questions asked must go beyond mere possession of an object, and we need qualitative data on usability maintenance, training, and the actual impact The actual impact on our day-to-day lives and assistive product that does not adapt to the user, that cannot be repaired when it breaks, or it's useless in the day-to-day life, cannot be considered meaningful to access. Third, we must enforce the core principle of nothing about us without us throughout the entire data collection and analysis process. Persons with disabilities should never be treated as mere figures or passive respondents. We must be at the table when designing the questions, gathering the data, and interpreting the results to guide public policy. We are the ones who need it. We are the ones who know it best. This is absolutely vital for those groups that are almost always left behind in data, such as youth with disabilities and persons with deafblindness. Quantitative data can tell us how many technologies have been distributed. But only we can tell you if that device actually empowers to study, to work, to communicate, make decisions, and ultimately live with dignity. That is what makes technology truly accessible. Therefore, lived experience should never be treated as a mere afterthought or supplemented data. It must be placed at the very center of our approach as it's the one true benchmark to understand its assistive technology and delivering real results for real people. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Per, for those reflections. I think you raised many important points about data effectiveness. Having the information only is simply giving you the paint, but not the paintbrush with which to executes your painting. The floor is now open for questions. And before I even finish my sentence, five hands. I saw you first, and then when I looked here, there are ten others. So let's take it sequentially, please.

We're honoured, pleased to be able to contribute to the preparation of the WHO global roadmap on universal access to assistive technology, which has now just been released for public review. One of the issues in that document, and I think more generally in the field of assistive technology, is a very deliberate reference not to disability, but to functional difficulty, which is fair, which is, I mean, Not everyone in the room who is wearing glasses will identify as being a person with a disability. But in a related field, rehabilitation, we see sometimes in systems a degree of discrimination against persons with disabilities in terms of access because rehabilitation is conceived of as being recovering function, previously existing function, and not about maintaining function or acquiring function even. So how can we guard against this in the field of assistive technology, a sort of unexpected consequence of removing the focus on disability onto functional difficulty, leading to a sort of a downgrading of prioritisation of access to persons with disabilities.

Good, I understand your question. We'll get to two or three more and then we'll go to answers, so yes ma'am.

Thank you. My name is Margaret Murphy O'Mahony. I'm a senator in the Irish Parliament. Obviously, people with disabilities are involved with the technology through their use of it. What I'm wondering is how can they be more involved in the design of this technology and the development and any decision making about it, please?

Thank you. And then just in front of you, there is a gentleman with your light is on.

Gurumay, apologies for my impatience. I'm well renowned for it. Look, when you're talking about assistive technology, obviously you're talking about a huge spectrum in the sense of facilitating mobility through to helping with delivery of Oh yeah, in a second, of therapies and yeah, I was told to introduce myself. My name is Rory Omuruku, I'm from Ireland, I'm from the Disability Matters Committee and I think this is actually, this entire conference has been really useful, but I think this is an absolutely vital piece of work that has to be done in relation to assistive technologies and I just want to use an example from my own life. I have mentioned my son Turlock before, he is 17 year old, he is in mainstream school at the minute, he has autism and he is doing very, very well. Now I would put a lot of that down to his primary school St. Joseph's and his secondary school O'Fee College and particularly the work done by teachers, principals and SNAs. But there would have been a history of, let's say, meltdowns and obviously a frustration. And while strategies are needed to deal with this, a major part of this was the issue he had initially with communication. And we would have had from time to time speech and language therapy. And myself and my wife would have attended it. And I always believed it would have worked better if it was in the school setting, if it involved the parents, the school, the child themselves. But I also believed rather than being given photocopies of exercises to do that you may remember, you may take notes, you may lose them, but to actually have something like assistive technology that children in particular are very good at using and that would also provide the backup for teachers and for all the other staff and family that you could actually get your best bang for buck. So that's one piece where I believe there's an absolute necessity and we have an issue in Ireland in to therapies and assessments. There is a huge political issue in relation to autism services for children. I believe that we might never have enough occupational therapists, psychologists, speech and language therapists, so assistive technology can really help. When I was on the autism committee in Ireland, we saw Fiacre Ryan, a young man from Mayo who was non-verbal. You can imagine the frustration of being non-verbal. He had used AAC, RPM in particular, to facilitate his communication. I was incredibly impressed when I saw him use it. This young fellow has been through college, he has written books, he is a poet, and that is something that was only delivered to him through assistive technology. It is unbelievable what can be done. It is a matter of ensuring that this happens. But like others have said, it is not always easy to go through grant schemes to get the technology for the technology to be employed across the education and any other services that are required. This is not simple, but I think see even from a budgetary point of view, the savings that can be made, how we can facilitate people to participate fully in community, in life, and that has been the major ethos that I have got across this conference. So I think assistive technology has a huge part to play. And Guram Ayagov, and I'm very sorry, because as per normal, I have hogged far more time than I should have.

Yes, ma'am, at the back, and then we'll take some answers and then go again. So I'm not going to ignore you. I know that you are waving at me.

My name is Laura Harman, I'm a senator from Ireland, from Cork in Ireland, and I'm part of the Disability Matters Committee in the Arctus in Ireland, and it's great to be here for this important discussion today. The issue of assisted technology is one that we're speaking about so much in Ireland, as our Minister has conveyed. My key question and concern around it is, with the advancements of artificial intelligence now as well, how can we ensure that when we're talking about access to assistive technology that we aren't going to be creating any further barriers with the advancements of AI and digital technologies and that we ensure that it's not just treated as a specialist need but that it is an urgent requirement for people. So that's my question today, Gurv Meel Margwiv.

Thank you. You must all have come to support the Minister because I don't think Ireland is playing in the World Cup. Yeah, no, I know there are many people in town, not only for this, the cost, but also for the games that are going to be taking place. I just want to quickly talk about, I think if you look at rehabilitation and functional difficulty, I think there is an interplay between the two because if you look, for example, at how athletes recover from injuries, it is also through rehabilitation, but to improve functional capacity, right? So it is to overcome a difficulty after an injury. I agree with you that there may be some stigmatization involved around the word rehabilitation. And maybe it's because the definition is not always clearly understood, because rehabilitation has essentially three components. It's the vocational rehabilitation, cognitive, and physical. And the physical is where I see the interaction really with functional difficulty and rehabilitation. So I think When you talk about rebuilding stamina, managing a symptom, you need rehabilitation for that, but it is to restore functional ability. I think that was more or less the easiest question, so that was my choice to answer. On artificial intelligence, let me tell you, we do a lot of work in WHO on artificial intelligence. applying it to ophthalmology and radiology, even in oncology and in emergency room settings. What we find is it saves a lot of time. It allows staff to be deployed in other areas. So one person can go further is what I mean. But the key thing here is there must always be a human to make the final decision. And that, I think, is the key thing also when you talk about how you will apply it in terms of applications that can be used in terms of the technology to assist people. One example that I'm thinking of is the software that's available on your phone that enables persons on the autism spectrum disorder to use the phone to be able to navigate public transportation. And this is written with the intention that they should be able to control it, not the software. Right. Now, I think there was a cluster of questions around Ireland. Yes, but before you ask more, can we get to some answers? So I want to ask Emer to respond and then some of the other panelists if they want.

I'll take some of those difficult questions from those difficult Irish politicians. Thank you very much for being here to participate and for your contributions which are really valuable, Margaret, Rory and Laura. I think Werner has spoken really about AI and And that last question, Laura, in relation to how we can ensure that AI doesn't become a barrier, and the only way to ensure it is for people with disabilities to be co-designing. That is the only way to ensure it, to be honest. Rory spoke about access to AAC devices, particularly for people who are autistic and particularly people who may be non-verbal. And I suppose it just gives me the opportunity to speak about a collaboration that our department funded with As I Am, which is an autism charity based in Ireland. Through funding, Jane-Anne, Colm and the team here in the department would have worked with ASIAAM to put together a funding mechanism that has enabled almost 500 families in the last number of years to avail of an AAC device. I suppose, just to the point, and really, I think it was Pierre, Pierre or Perry, apologies, Pierre. here who spoke about how it's not just about possessions, I think was the phrase, it's not just about possessions, it's about actually being able to use it. And that's why not only are we funding the devices, but we're funding training and we're funding a way for this to become a part of of families, a part of classrooms. I recently launched the report on the first year of that. It was initially a pilot programme, same chance to participate is the name of the report. And we have now, we've now elongated the pilot and are continuing to commit funding to it because we know this makes a real practical difference to in particular young people and children's lives. We heard some really good testimonials about the impact it's having in classrooms, about normalization of AAC devices and the impact it has within families. So just thought it was an opportunity to maybe mention that. Thank you very much. I'll hand back over, Verna.

Thank you. Just before I go to the next 10 questions, which are already lined up, I wanted to turn to the colleague from Singapore, from the Ministry of Social and Family Development. Ang Wei Hong, who is the head of delegation, who also has asked to make an intervention, please.

Singapore believes that assistive technology is not just about access, it's about enabling persons with disabilities to live, work and participate fully in society. We are committed to leveraging technology to enhance the quality of life and work opportunities of persons with disabilities. As of 2023, more than 70% of persons with disabilities in Singapore reported having their assistive technology needs met. In Singapore, we do this in two ways. First, persons with disability can visit our assistive technology centres where the staff can help match them to the right tools and solutions for their needs. Second, Our Assistive Technology Fund ensures affordability of the assistive technology needs through means-tested subsidy. Over 2,000 beneficiaries benefit every year. As technology evolves quickly, we want to look beyond the risks towards new opportunities that emerge. This includes the lookout for new solutions and approaches that can serve our community better. Singapore looks forward to learning from the experiences shared today and how we can collectively do more to ensure that assistive tech reaches those who need it most. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Ang. Now, I think we have about 15 minutes or so, so we must be disciplined. We are going to have a question in Italian, but not right now. I want to encourage you to start playing with your earbuds. because the question in Italian will come through the sound system, there will be an interpreter. So if you use the earpiece and you find the English language, then you will be ready for the interpreter. So while you do that, let me turn to an English question. The lady here, you wanted to ask a question or not? Yes, right? Please ask your question and then we go to the Italian question.

Thank you, moderator. My name is Nasiria Ali. I am a member of parliament of United Republic of Tanzania. and representing special seats of persons with disabilities. And it's my first time to be appointed as a member of parliament as a deaf person, because it was a seat that we fought for it for so long. Just a comment about the reasonable accommodation for persons with disability, as in the provision of assistive devices. I want to say that by having this discussion, it will help us as countries to think on a way of reducing the cost of persons with disabilities to access assistive devices. How? maybe WHO and other international partners could sit with these companies who are designing these assistive devices to see on a way around to reduce costs so that persons with disability can afford assistive devices. And I think we really need to advocate for this because we actually need assistive devices to run our lives. Thank you.

Thank you very much.

And now our guest from Italy. I'm sorry, the person has not got their microphone on it. She needs to have a red light on her microphone. Just one moment, please. Thank you, now it's working. Thank you very much. Now she can speak.

Yes, good afternoon everyone. I am Giusy Princi and I am a member of the European Parliament. I would like to thank you and pay you my compliments for your excellent interventions. I would like to say that both the questions from Ireland and from Uzbekistan were very interesting. I heard, and I was very proud to hear this, that Uzbekistan has already tried using ASIFTIC technologies, and you have done so with the WHO help. I am the chair of a delegation that works between the EU and Central Asian countries. I would like the chair of this session to give me more elements about what is done because, in March, we went to Uzbekistan, where we worked together with the Uzbek ambassador in Europe, Mr. Fazlov, and we participated in the first inter-parliamentary forum of the five countries of Central Asia. We worked on a number of issues. So I would really be interested that the model that was presented here by Uzbekistan could be brought to the forum that we created, the inter-parliamentary forum that has amongst others the objective of bringing more inclusivity, more accessibility to everyone so as to enable persons with disability to fully enjoy their rights and live a fully social life. So I would like to kindly ask the from Uzbekistan to give me the details of his speech and his contact because it would be interesting to pass on to other Central Asian countries. Thank you so much.

Thank you. Please, now I know you have been smiling for me at me for some time.

Called industry responsible in these conversations. You know, industry obviously is profiting from assistive technology in such a big way, but I find that they're missing from these conversations a lot of the time and obviously it's really important to hold governments responsible of course, but industry needs to be far more than a supplier. They need to actually have accountability and I think, you know, as a organisation we do partner with industry obviously on product development and those different parts, but very rarely are they part of the whole conversation and I think they're missing here. I don't know if there's any industry partners in this room. I wish there was because I think it's a huge piece and I think you see it globally and you know, we work all around the world and there is no country that I would see where industry is really at the table taking responsibility.

Is there any brave person from industry in the room that willing to identify yourself? No. I thought so. Right, yes sir.

Thank you, sorry about that. I'd be the fifth parliamentarian from Ireland to speak here today, so my name is Maurice Quinlivan, I'm a TD for Limerick City, but I also chair the IRCTUS, which is the joint committee of both houses of the Irish Parliament Disability Matters Committee, which has been working there for the last year or so. Just on the issue of assistive technology, I wanna remind everyone of the conference that Ireland hosting. So that's really a positive announcement there by our Minister earlier on. And when we talk about assisted technologies, I think the best place to roll the band with if we can and where possible is in school settings as best we can do that and make sure that, you know, I was struck by what Pierre said about people who might use these technologies or need to use these technologies cannot be passive respondents in the design of these or the delivery of these. Also then around the issue that has been raised by a number of contributions about the issue of funding where it's available, forms to access assistive technology and the knowledge about assistive technology, they may be as simple as possible that can be done. So if the idea of countries with best practice could share with other countries where reforms are made really, really easy, where schools, principals and people with experts in the schools would be listened to rather than have to go through a complex process of applying for stuff would be very, very useful. And on the issue of backup therapies around schools and people who are assessing those assistant technology would be very, very useful there as well. So thanks very much. I just want to thank Ireland, the minister herself and the department for organizing this event and the WHO for facilitating as well. So, and thanks to everybody who contributed.

Thank you very much. Maybe we can take two more and then I want to ask all the panelists also to reflect on what they've heard before we close. Yes, ma'am. Keep it on, then when it's red, you speak.

Oh, okay. Hello, my name is Rasha. I'm an intern at the PM of Morocco. I'm also an undergraduate student at Penn State University, and I actually did study abroad about disabilities in Ireland last summer. I do have a question about when we enter these conversations about assistive technology, how do we ensure that there are protections in place for children and young adults when using it, whether that means in general, whether that means social media, scams, whatnot, how do we ensure that there's these protections for young adults and children that are using these assistive technologies.

The ambassador is a good friend of mine. I'm going to tell him that you asked a difficult question here. Is there any other question? Yes, ma'am. Yes, that's as good as a question or an answer together, please.

Chair, again through my head of delegation. I think one thing that I wanted to bring to the attention of all the members is, well, a lot of studies, surveys, researches have been done, but to me, the biggest problem is how do we translate those into really actions? That's where the biggest gap is. Even the simple interventions that we could have done to support persons with disabilities, they are not yet done. You may have all the assistive technologies in the world, but if all the policies and all the surveys are not translated into actions, that becomes a problem. When we conducted that survey in Tanzania, we came to realize that there were three important things that we are missing. One of them was accessibility, the other one was affordability, and the other one was quality of services. So with accessibility, by then, that was about six years ago, the access to health facilities was almost Only 40% of the people could access health facilities within five kilometers. Majority actually, they access services within 40 to 100 kilometers. You can imagine a person with disability, how do they access services within such a long time? So the first thing we did as a government was to make sure that we have infrastructure, especially at primary healthcare. Why primary health care? Because 80 to 85% of our population do access services at that level, and that include persons with disability. So that was one thing. But the other thing that came was affordability. How do they access these gadgets? So that's why we've also included this in our universal health insurance. So persons with disability, they'll also be addressed in the universal health insurance as a package. There are those people, persons with disability who have financial muscles, then they can do it, but there are those who cannot. And then the fund will have to address their financial needs, including assistive technology. But the other thing that we found as a barrier was the quality of health services. Talking of quality, when you have a person with disability, they need somebody who can communicate to them because persons with disability, they have different types of disabilities. we found that we had staff or healthcare providers who could not really communicate and understand their needs. So the other thing that we did was really to come up with a training program, at least in selected areas, to train our healthcare staff so that they can communicate. I again agree with the previous speaker. I think it's high time we learn from the interventions that we did previously in the health sector. When we had global health security issues for diseases such as polio, measles, et cetera, et cetera, these were taken as public health interventions and the vaccines were subsidized, you know, all the way by a lot of international organizations, but also at country level. Why don't we make the same decision when it comes assistive technology? How can we subsidize these facilities so that, you know, this very important part of the community can also enjoy their rights because health is not a privilege. Health is not charity. It is a human right. Back in Tanzania, we have about 11.5% of our population are persons with disabilities. So it's really a very significant population of the country. So I think WHO and other international organizations can take this. Can we subsidize assistive technology devices just like we are doing for vaccines and other commodities that are of public health importance? But finally, I think it's the use of data. Everybody talks about a right based approach, but you can't make health a right based approach for persons with disability if you don't know how many they are, where they are, What type of disability do they have? What are the enablers? What are the challenges that they are facing? What is the policy framework like? Is it supportive or is it inhibitive? So I think it's also important to have data in place that will inform us exactly what are we going to address, how and to who exactly, and how are we going to monitor the progress and also measure the performance or the results of our various interventions. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much. I'll get around to the affordability and the subsidization at the end, but Mary Prescod, do you want to also add something from the Tanzanian perspective to some of the things you heard here, or are you going to leave it with your colleague?

Leave it with the colleague.

Right. There is Tanzanian unanimity. I want to ask Per if he wants to reflect on some of the questions.

Well, the world is also moving at a quick pace. And keeping in mind, that's for people without disabilities, whereas people with disabilities are at a further distance. In the development and improvement of these technologies, active collaboration and participation. Thank you. Yes, it's important that we're all involved. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Per. You said at the beginning that you are feeling like the small seed here at the podium, but I think you have grown to the tallest tree. Catherine, do you have any final thoughts?

Thank you. Final thoughts, see persons with disabilities as a client and customer, not as a burden. You miss a chance as company if you don't invest into accessible devices. We are an aging continent in the EU, so count on us and we have money. Substitutes already mentioned and from a political side, how can we support AT or accessible devices, it is on public procurement. So that could be an angle from a political side. And of course, what comes as product, as device, as tool into the European market. So terrorist controls, sorry for the T word, but tariffs control what comes into the EU market. So I think from a political side, parliament side, we do have opportunities to see it as a chance that almost 100 million persons with disabilities are customers and clients. Thank you.

Thank you, Catherine. From Uzbekistan side, I hear that they say that you can actually share in their best practices, but it will cost.

For some money. Thank you. Thank you very much for your question and a special special thing for all the work done with our ambassador Fazilov in Brussels. But from our side, I will share all contact details of our ambassador for Central Asian ambassadors based in New York. And let's work together. I will share all contact details. Let's see to discuss our further cooperation with you here in New York also.

Thank you very much, Ulugbek. And, Emir, I heard from, well, there were a couple of more Irish interventions, but maybe you want to speak to the other two.

There have. Yeah, I might actually just pick up on what Rachel said around industry not being at the table. And I know you're going to speak to this too from the WHO perspective, but if I could just speak maybe from an Irish perspective to say that we're very lucky in Ireland that we have very many technology companies headquartered or at least their European headquarters is in Ireland, primarily in Dublin. So I might give, as seen as we had so many difficult questions from so many Irish politicians, I might give them a bit of homework. And we have, as was mentioned by the chair, we have an Arcticus committee, so parliamentary committee dedicated to disability matters. And I think maybe this is something that we could take up through that committee ourselves. And maybe we could bring that learning to the conference that officials in our department are organizing in terms of the global conference. And maybe I'll just do a last minute pitch for that. I hope that many people will come to it. I might also just mention in terms of that last contribution from Tanzania and accessible and healthcare, I think you're right and more needs to be done to catch up in that space for sure. But there's some really good examples happening. I know even in my own community, in my own constituency area in Rowla, for example, in North Glendalough, assistive technology can now be borrowed out of the library. So things like that, I think, are welcome. and public accessibility opportunities. And I think we could probably collaborate with each other better and learn from what's happening in one another's communities. But it's just been an absolute pleasure to be part of today's discussion. I think what was probably the best part of today's discussion was that it truly was an inclusive discussion. It wasn't a top table, it was questions and answers and it was interactive. And I'd just like to particularly thank everybody for participating in that for the questions and the contributions and of in particular to the Irish contingencies at that.

Thank you very much. I think that in terms of the industry involvement, it certainly is uneven. We have had some positive experiences with the industry from the WHO side. in terms of getting them involved in manufacturing of wheelchairs in developing countries, prosthetics, because the requirement is different. The requirement of a wheelchair in Europe is not the same as in Africa or Asia or Latin America, and the cost of manufacturing it is much less. if it doesn't need to be imported. So we have had very positive experiences in bringing price down with private sector that actually train or invest in local or regional manufacturing to bring the costs down and subsidize it through that way. And another good example is in terms of the initiatives that we have worldwide on vision loss. where many of the companies that manufacture eyewear, eyeglasses and eyewear have partnered with us in providing frames and lenses, donating it basically, so that we can screen and provide people with very low cost assistive technology for vision. So there are good examples. Of course, like everything in life, when you find something good, the challenge is how to scale it up. And that's where we all need to work together, I think, to make it happen and learn from each other. I think Tanzania gave very good examples of how countries like Malawi, Kenya, all your neighboring countries can really come and learn from what you have done. And I encourage those in the room to do so. It's been a pleasure helping you through this. the session. I enjoyed it very much and thank you to all the panelists for being great hosts and for their very, very good answers because I don't think anybody in the room is unhappy that their questions were not responded to. So thank you very much. You have about half an hour. Half an hour to the television or to the conference room. you can do you can you can