Experiences from other countries shows that voluntary efforts and demographic dynamics are not sufficient in adequately removing barriers towards achieving Universal Accessibility (UA). Instead, among other things, a range of standards and regulations are necessary, along with institutions that are prepared to disseminate these and enforce compliance.
2.1 Universal Accessibility legislation and policies in Vietnam
The 1992 Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam introduced the need to protect people with disabilities (PWDs). The rights of people with disabilities were identified in the Law on People with Disabilities, approved by the National Assembly on June 17, 2010, and became effective from January 1, 2011. This includes, among others, the right to equal participation in social activities, living independently, and having access to public services, transportation, information technology, cultural services, sports, tourism, and other services appropriate to the different types and levels of disability. Since then the Ministry of Construction, which has a mandate and responsibilities to ensure that the built environment is accessible to PWDs, has published a number of legal documents for the design and construction of accessible structures to cater for their needs. These are as follows: • Vietnam Construction Standard TCXDVN 228:1998 Access of disabled to the building— Part 1: Access for the wheelchair bound person – Design requirements. • Vietnam Construction Standard TCXDVN 264:2002 Building and Facilities— Basic rules of accessible design and construction for people with disabilities. • Vietnam Construction Standard TCXDVN 265:2002 Route and Sidewalk— Basic rules of accessible design and construction for people with disabilities. • Vietnam Building code QCXDVN 01:2002 Building code of accessible construction for people with disabilities.
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However, after 2006, Vietnam’s institutional approach to disability changed significantly, as a consequence of becoming one of the 150 country signatories of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). This advocates for the promotion and protection of PWDs to ensure they enjoy fully and fairly all human rights and freedoms. The convention sets the level and quality of inclusion of PWDs in society and the type of policies and instruments that must be used to facilitate this. Accessibility is one of the most important elements to be considered, as can be seen from Article 9 of the convention:
To enable persons with disabilities to live independently and participate fully in all aspects of life, State Parties shall take appropriate measures to ensure to persons with disabilities access, on an equal basis with others, to the physical environment, to transportation, to information and communications, including information and communications technologies and systems, and to other facilities and services open or provided to the public, both in urban and in rural areas. This article also highlights the importance of promoting, monitoring, training on, and maintaining accessibility.
Urban Accessibility Design Guideline
