RI Regions
Asia & Pacific
CSO Capacity Building Project
Theme: The Implementation of Disability Inclusive SDGs as a Level of AP Region Disability-inclusive Response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
4 CSOs from Nepal, Mongolia, Vietnam, and Pakistan are participating in this project to ensure the rights of the disabled in the Asia-Pacific region and to fully participate in society. The project runs from June to December, and the final joint meeting will be held in early December.
Chairs meeting of all committees of KRI- July 23, 2021
There were 10 items to suggest to each party for coming new government but specially weighted on old generation with disabilities because the number of this generation is increasing since our life span is extended longer very fast. The ratio of this group more than 40 % of total population with disabilities in Global It Challenge:
▪ National league: March 2021, 165 youths with disabilities in 4 countries / on-site
▪ Preliminary Round: June 17~18, 484 youths with disabilities from 13 countries / online
▪ Final Round: in October 20~21, 352 youths with disabilities from 13 countries / online
▪ Outcome:
With the goal of 2024, the GITC International Organization Preparation Committee was formed (Chairman: former UN Ambassador Oh Joon), it laid the foundation for standardization of operation methods and securing fairness of competitions such as upgrading regulations and establishing an automatic scoring system.
The possibility of online competitions was confirmed that youths with disabilities can participate in GITC anytime and anywhere by establishing the one-stop online platform including e-Learning system.
It is laying the foundation for developing it into a world-certified IT competition in the scale of the Special Olympics through forming the GITC Committee centered on RI members.
The 50th Conference of RI Korea- Oct 29, 2021
RI Korea have been organizing Conference with specific topics each year, we celebrated 50 anniversary and the topic of this year was “Paradigm Shift: COVID-19 and Disability Rights” and “Policies of New Government.
Leadership
Joseph Kwan
Vice-President, Asia & Pacific
Maria Ferreira
Deputy Vice-President, Asia & Pacific
Chul Jae Lee
Deputy Vice President, Asia & Pacific
Joseph Kwan is an Architect and Consultant in Universal Accessibility who received his architectural training in Australia, and later in Environmental Psychology from the United Kingdom. He is awarded the degree of Doctor of the University by the Queensland University of Technology Council in 2020. He has more than 40 years of experience in international architectural practice having worked in Australia, United Kingdom, France and now over 30 years in Hong Kong. Joseph has been the Director of a Hong Kong NGO for 18 years that focused on making Hong Kong more accessible for the elderly and people with disabilities, to the built environment and public transportation. He is the Founding Director of UDA Consultants Ltd. (Universal Design and Accessibility Consultants) in Hong Kong since 2005. Joseph was a Consultant to the UN-ESCAP, on the preparation of a Technical Guideline on the “Promotion of Non-Handicapping Environments for Disabled and Elderly Persons in the Asia – Pacific Region”, and also a Resource Person for the UN-ESCAP on “The Regional Training of Trainers Course on the Promotion of Non-Handicapping Environments for People with Disabilities”. He is their current Expert/Consultant on the promotion of Barrier-Free Tourism in Asia and the Pacific. He was a Consultant to the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on the preparation of a Technical Guideline on “Universal Access to ADB Transport Projects”, in addition to advising on accessibility to the proposed MRT Systems in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Joseph was a Member of the ISO (International Standards Organization) Working Group on the drafting of the Standard entitled: “Accessibility and Usability of the Built Environment” 2011, and is currently serving in the Working Group on the Review of this Standard. He is a Member of the Hong Kong Government Rehabilitation Advisory Committee (RAC), a Member of the Working Group on Hong Kong Rehabilitation Programme Plan (RPP) 2020-30 Review, a Convenor of the RPP Task Force on Accessibility and the Chairman of RAC Sub-committee on Access. Since 1987, Joseph Kwan has prepared over 300 Personal Injury legal reports, for people who sustained personal injuries, for the Legal Aid Department, private Solicitors and Lawyers in Hong Kong, the United Kingdom and Canada. He has extensive lecture experiences in the field of access and universal design at the local, regional and international level having lectured in 33 countries.
News & Events
Global IT Challenge
https://youtu.be/Mdb3xaUpfyM Press Release - Organizing Committee The Global IT Challenge for youth with disabilities (GITC), which seeks to strengthen the IT capabilities of youth with disabilities and bridge the digital divide, is recruiting countries to participate...
ECOWAS calls for stronger support for people with disabilities
A working group of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a regional political and economic union of 15 countries located in West Africa, urges stronger support for people with disabilities in a communique recently released during a regional...
Universal Design in Kindergarten and School, Guidelines and Universal Tools
The project Universal Design in Kindergarten and School, Guidelines and Universal Tools, is a project in cooperation between Rehabilitation International (RI) Norway and the Education Commission in RI International. The project is funded by grants from Global...
People with disabilities more likely to delay care during pandemic: study
According to a study published in a recent issue of Health Affairs, people with disabilities were more likely to delay medical care because of COVID-19. The study pulled from data from the 2020 National Health Interview Survey, an annual study conducted by the Centers...
Call for Applications – RI Centennial Award of Outstanding Contributions
On the occasion of RI's centennial anniversary, we are pleased to announce the RI Centennial Award of Outstanding Contributions that will be presented in conjunction with our Centennial Anniversary Celebrations, to commend individuals or organizations that have made...
More training needed for physicians to improve care for people with disabilities
According to a recent study of American physicians funded by the National Institutes of Health of the US Department of Health and Human Service, some physicians are refusing to provide care services for patients with disabilities because they lack the knowledge...
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