The Ministry of Spatial Planning, Traffic and Communications and Environmental Protection of the Zenica-Doboj Canton will allocate 250,000 KM for the removal of architectural barriers with the aim of improving the mobility of disabled persons. The funds have been allocated to seven cities and municipalities that have pledged to participate financially in the implementation of the nominated projects through a public invitation, the Press Service announced.
Equality and non-discrimination
On this occasion, the Minister of Spatial Planning, Transport and Communications and Environmental Protection of the Zenica-Doboj Canton, Adnan Šabani, held a meeting with Harun Aliefendić, the president of the cantonal Coalition of Organizations of Persons with Disabilities.
“During the tour of local communities in our canton and through communication with associations that gather people with disabilities, we came to know that our fellow citizens with disabilities face a series of difficulties every day, and the existence of barriers, architectural, communication and others, makes it difficult to achieve the principle of equality and non-discrimination . We decided to deviate from the previous practice when local communities were paid millions of funds for road infrastructure, and they did not solve crucial problems with architectural barriers so that our fellow citizens with disabilities could be mobile,” says Minister Šabani.
Accessibility to public institutions
According to Harun Aliefendić, the funds that will be paid to the cities of Zenica, Visoko and Zavidovići, and the municipalities of Vareš, Olovo, Maglaj and Doboj Jug, are sufficient to solve to the greatest extent the problems of accessibility to public and other institutions, as well as movement on the streets and squares.
“I have to admit that this is the first time since the existence of the Zenica-Doboj canton that a systematic approach has been taken to help and support the mobility of people with disabilities. The coalition of organizations of persons with disabilities, ZDK, appealed for help, but Minister Šabani and the Government of ZDK went a step further and proposed concrete measures in order to directly help our members as soon as possible”, Aliefendića said.
