Barrier-free environment in business: a new section on the Diia.Business portal

February 24, 2021

Public portal now offers information on how to create barrier-free business and inclusive working conditions for employees with disabilities

Photo from the website of the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine

Kyiv, 23 February 2021 – The Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, under an initiative of First Lady Olena Zelenska and in cooperation with the civil society organisation Bezbariernist has launched the "Business without Barriers" section of the Diia.Business portal, supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)and with the financial support of the Government of Denmark.

For the first time, entrepreneurs have access to systematic information on how to implement the principles of a barrier-free approach to doing business. The topics presented include:

- Inclusion and diversity in small- and medium-sized businesses: a new trend or a must-have?

- How to hire a person with a disability, and how to conduct a barrier-free job interview;

- How to arrange a workplace for a person with a disability;

- Examples of barrier-free businesses in Ukraine;

- How to build internal communications for the development of a barrier-free approach to business;

- How to integrate the barrier-free approach with the marketing communications of a business.

On the launch of the portal section, First Lady Olena Zelenska said that the “Barrier-free business” project was unique and innovative. "For the first time, small- and medium-sized businesses will receive systematic and easy-to-use information on how to implement a barrier-free approach and on inclusion," Zelenska said.

According to official statistics, there were 2.7 million persons with disabilities in Ukraine as of 1 January 2020. And as of 1 July 2020, only 776,000 of them were employed.

Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine Valeria Ionan said during the presentation of the new section of the portal that the ministry fully supports the initiative to promote the concept of inclusiveness in the business environment.

"The introduction of the barrier-free approach, and the principles of equality and diversity as part of business processes, is the basis for increasing efficiency and competitiveness,” Ionan said. “At the moment this is mostly done by big companies, so it's time to extend this practice to small- and medium-sized enterprises. In addition, inclusion is an integral part of European values.”

The project is particularly relevant in the context of the development of the National Barrier-Free Strategy, which will be presented by 12 April 2021, Veronika Seleha, Director General of the Directorate for Humanitarian Policy at the Presidential Office of Ukraine, noted at the launch of the portal section.

Nicolaj Sonderbye, Senior Democracy and Human Rights Advisor for UNDP Ukraine, added that for a long time it was assumed that the challenges that persons with disabilities face were a natural and unavoidable consequence of disability. The adoption of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its optional protocol have changed these attitudes significantly, he said.

"Inclusion is very important – not only for sustainable, but also for equal and equitable development,” Sonderbye said. “As Ukrainian business focuses on the European market, and Europe sees inclusiveness as a priority for all vulnerable groups, Ukrainian companies should also attract and employ people with disabilities.”

The new portal section contains the first batch of information materials. A separate section on the Diia.Business portal has recommendations, successful cases and expert advice on the implementation of the principles of barrier-free approach.

Background information:

UNDP Ukraine has built a strong partnership with the Ministry of Digital Transformation since the ministry was formed in August 2019, supporting such initiatives as #HackCorona, which engaged IT experts, civic activists, start-ups, journalists in developing IT-projects to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. It has also contributed to the development of a Diia.Business platform for small- and medium-sized enterprises, designing mobile solutions for administrative services provision in eastern Ukraine.

During 2020, the Ministry of Digital Transformation with the UNDP support launched two series of educational videos on the Dia.Osvita platform aimed at promoting human rights: a course on personal data protection, and a course on access to public information for civil servants.

Media enquires:

Yuliia Samus, UNDP in Ukraine Communications Team Leader, yuliia.samus@undp.org