Special Facilities for the People with Disabilities in Dubai

Dubai really cares about people with disabilities and they continue to improve the facilities for the disabled with a vision of transforming Dubai to a disability-friendly city by 2020.Some of the services provided to the people with disabilities are:-

Special facilities at airport and hotels

Many major hotels in the city have adapted rooms and facilities especially for people with disabilities. Some of them are:-

• City Centre Hotel, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Hilton International Dubai, Hyatt Regency, Jebel Ali Golf Resort & Spa, Jumeira Beach Hotel, JW Marriott Hotel, Metropolitan Palace Hotel, Oasis Beach Hotel, Radisson SAS Hotel – Jumeirah Beach, The Ritz-Carlton Dubai and Renaissance Dubai Hotel.

Also, Dubai Civil Aviation Authority has dedicated personalized services at Dubai Airport for passengers with disabilities.

Special vehicles and free parking

• Dubai Taxi Corporation have introduced specially designed van for the disabled which has lifts to carry passengers inside the van along with the wheelchair.
• RTA has exempted them from Slik charges.
• They can get a special free car-parking permit on submitting an online application to the RTA together with a medical certificate showing the disability.

Free parking cards

• RTA provides free parking facilities for those with disabilities (any nationality).
  • Special parking cards need to be renewed every five years.
  • Submit the application at any RTA-affiliated customer service centres: Deira, Umm Al Ramoul, or Al Barsha.
• They are also exempted from the vehicle registration fees of AED 360 by RTA.They will have to pay only AED 50 for the technical inspection of the vehicle at the RTA approved companies.

Special sign-language call centre from DEWA

The Ash??ir (Arabic for ??to signal??) live video chat service by Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) is available on its smartphone app (Apple and Android).  Specially trained employees at the DEWA call centre can use sign language to communicate with the customers who have disabilities, such as speech disorders or hearing impairments.

Schools

Schools like Dubai Autism Center, Dubai Center for Special Needs, Al Noor Training Centre and Rashid Paediatric Therapy Centre provides great support and training for the children with special needs.

Dubai Club for the Disabled

It is a club devoted to encouraging people with disability to take part in sports, cultural and social activities and helping them spend their leisure time in a best way.Also, in addition to sports activities, the club conducts many programmes, activities, training courses etc. The club also has a special section for girls.

El Kayt employment programme

The El Kayt employment programme, which is an initiative by the Community Development Authority (CDA), aims at providing people with disabilities a fair opportunity to find jobs suited to their particular skill level, academic qualifications and physical abilities in leading institutions in the public and private sectors.It also aims at providing appropriate training to enhance their personal skills as well as raise awareness about disability within the community.

People searching for a job as well as employers willing to offer jobs are advised to contact CDA.

Sanad card

It is a special card introduced by CDA for people with disabilities.This card will provide discounts for public transport and healthcare services. All Dubai residents with disabilities can get this card free of cost. You have to fill in the application for the card at one of the Authority??s centres: Al Manara, Hatta, Tawar (personally or via a first-degree representative) together with the following documents

• Medical Reports approved by a Governmental entity proving the kind and severity of the disability.
• National ID Card.
• Passport Copy.
• A proof (DEWA Bill, Lease Contract) of residence in the Emirate of Dubai for expats
• A copy of Social Affairs Card, if any.

Sanad Relay Centre

It is a communication system initiated by the CDA through an application that can be downloaded on PCs or smart devices. Services offered by the relay centre are:

• communication service: enabling people with hearing or speech problems to communicate with persons or entities in the community to receive the service they need in their daily life .Using SANAD Relay centre, a CDA sign language specialist will act as a communication assistant who uses text message or sign language via video call as communication medium, to connect the disabled person with the person he needs to communicate.
• consultation service:  answers queries addressed by people with disability and their families.

Source : www.dubai.ae