About Project

One of the most important social transformations, over the past decades, has been related to changing the paradigm of disability. Medical and protective model has been replaced by the social and inclusive model, the one which focuses on the rights, equal opportunities and full participation of people with disabilities in the social and economic life of the community. Apart from the aforementioned social transformation, which was followed by infrastructure and technology development, today we talk not only about infrastructure, but also about technical support and other tools. The project "A Step Towards Accessible Belgrade" represents the first step towards greater opportunities, primarily for disabled person, but also for those with special needs, and it is being realized through a customized information system. The system supports people with disabilities and those with special needs (pregnant women, persons with a baby, elderly persons, persons with a temporary problem, obese persons...) in achieving and maintaining an optimal level of autonomy and social participation. Also, it provides an overview of all public areas, locations and services that exist at the local community level (medical, social, educational services ...) as the main guarantor of participation in social life, in accordance with individual needs and expectations. The need for this service is based on the fact that accessibility (architectural barriers) is one of the three basic problems for people with disabilities, as well as for all the persons with special needs. In this sense, resolving this issue represents a continuous effort to ensure equal access to location, products and services to all people, both residents, domestic and foreign tourists, regardless of the potential level of disability, their age, and/or any other form of special circumstances (pregnant women, persons with a baby, temporary problems, obesity, persons with chronic problems ...). Neglecting access to the environment and preventing people from moving freely is not just an act of discrimination against persons with disabilities, but also a violation of human rights to participate in society on an equal basis with others. Because of the inaccessible environment, people with disabilities across the country, even in Belgrade, live with limited opportunities to explore their potential as active members of society. Isolation, that people with disabilities feel every day, can only be reversed by creating an uninterrupted chain of movement. This chain starts from accessible housing and applies to all public buildings, transport and environment, i.e. the infrastructure. Therefore, generating the mentioned chain, i.e. creating a predefined, continuous path from a user's site to a desired destination is the main goal of the project.