Areas of activity

When people see a child with various disabilities or a child in a wheelchair, the first thing they think of is their disability and the difficulties they have to live with. Often, this first impression does not allow us to look deeper, to see the main thing - a person with all their talents, aspirations and dreams.

It is the duty of adults and society as a whole to help children grow into full-fledged people. To make sure that every child has real friends in their lives, their first "A", their first love.

That is why it is so important to learn to see all children as children first and foremost, and only then as their peculiarities. This is exactly the goal of the communication campaign "#ThisAbility: Seeing the Child First, Then the Disability", implemented with the assistance of the EU Delegation to Ukraine, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the National Assembly of Persons with Disabilities of Ukraine (NAPD).

Its goal is to encourage Ukrainians to be more tolerant of children with disabilities, because all children, regardless of their characteristics or even physical disabilities, have equal rights to be an integral part of society.

The project also held a competition for the installation of inclusive playgrounds, and received more than 200 applications from different communities from all over Ukraine. As a result, 4 winners of the competition, namely Bohdan Khmelnytsky Central Park in Lviv; Berdychiv City Council (Zhytomyr Oblast); Krasnoarmiysk City Council (Donetsk Oblast); and Perebykovets Village Council (Chernivtsi Oblast), will soon equip inclusive playgrounds with the support of UNICEF and the EU.

More information about the Campaign at the link.

Accessibility issues quality gynecological services include EVERY WOMAN!

Read more about the Campaign for via link

In 2019, the National Assembly of People with Disabilities of Ukraine (NAPWD), together with the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), successfully implemented a project aimed at ensuring equal voting rights for people with disabilities in Ukraine.

Goal - to enable people with disabilities to express their civic position on an equal footing with other citizens through participation in elections.

Key tasks:

• Development and distribution of methodological guides and memos for voters with disabilities, exclusively with printed and audio versions.
• An educational campaign on social media, radio and the NAIU website.

Thanks to the project, more than 20,000 copies of the handbook "How to Vote for a Voter with a Disability" were distributed to civil society organizations in 18 regions of Ukraine. The educational campaign reached an audience of over 840,000 people via the Internet, radio, and Facebook, helping to spread information about the election and the rights of people with disabilities.

Read more project​

View video "We will do choice accessible Together!"

The project was implemented with the support of the Ukrainian Women's Fund (UWF) and the Government of Canada. The National Assembly of People with Disabilities is a thematic partner of the global initiative "Women's Voice and Leadership - Ukraine". 

"Women's Voice and Leadership - Ukraine was implemented in cooperation with the International Renaissance Foundation and the NGO La Strada Ukraine.

Goal: to improve the situation with women's and girls' rights in Ukraine, as well as to promote gender equality through support of the women's/feminist movement.

The project activities involved girls and women with disabilities, leaders of women's NGOs and organizations of women/persons with disabilities, and mothers raising children with disabilities.

Disability, as we understand it (Watch the video)

About gender and disability and how these two concepts are related to each other (Watch the video)

Project "Implementation of the National Human Rights Strategy as a way to reduce discrimination against people with disabilities"

With the support of the British Embassy in Ukraine, the National Assembly of People with Disabilities of Ukraine (NAPWD) has implemented a project aimed at overcoming discrimination against people with disabilities. The project focuses on advocating for the integration of the standards of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities into the National Human Rights Strategy.

As part of the advocacy area, we assessed the inclusion of the standards of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the National Human Rights Strategy and other long-term decisions in ten areas. This assessment was carried out both at the national level and at the local level on the example of 5 regions of Ukraine. The final stage of this area was advocating for amendments to the National Human Rights Strategy based on the monitoring results.

The second area is to raise awareness of representatives of NGOs working in the interests of people with disabilities, people with disabilities, central and local government officials, and local government officials on the prevention and combating of discrimination against people with disabilities and the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. A series of trainings were held for these categories and information materials were distributed, which helped to improve their understanding of equality issues and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

As part of the third component, people with disabilities received qualified legal assistance, including support in strategic cases of discrimination on the basis of disability in courts. The provision of legal aid, including strategic litigation, as well as the collection of statistical data on existing case law, has helped to develop successful practices to combat discrimination.

One of the project's outcomes was an alternative report on the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which will allow engaging international bodies and the public in advocating for change in the country.

Key results of the project :

• A handbook for people with disabilities "Discrimination on the Basis of Disability: Identifying, Responding, Protecting Ourselves" was developed and is available in print, electronic and audio formats.
• Information materials were expanded in different regions of Ukraine, reaching an audience of over 430 thousand people.

On September 29, 2018, the All-Ukrainian Forum "The Right to Life", organized by the National Assembly of People with Disabilities of Ukraine (NAPDU), was held in Kyiv. The event brought together numerous participants, including representatives of NGOs, government, international institutions and activists. The forum was dedicated to the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities in Ukraine, creating equal opportunities for all citizens and ensuring their right to a full life.

The Forum has become an important platform for discussing the social and legal challenges faced by people with disabilities and for finding effective solutions to overcome discrimination and improve their living conditions.

View video forum on YouTube

On December 3, 2018, the Zhovten Cinema in Kyiv hosted the premiere screening of the documentary The Right to Life.

The event gathered more than 450 spectators, including representatives of more than 80 public organizations of people with disabilities from all regions of Ukraine, as well as representatives of state and international, student organizations and all interested parties.

The event, organized by the National Assembly of People with Disabilities of Ukraine (NAPWD), was a unique social and legal event aimed at drawing attention to the rights of people with disabilities and raising awareness of their life challenges.

Check out documentary movie "Law on life" on the youtube.

The project, implemented with the participation and support of HealthProm (London) and the Early Intervention Institute Charitable Foundation (Kharkiv), aims to create a meaningful environment to support families of children with disabilities in Ukraine.

Goal - to unite the efforts of parents, representatives of NGOs led by parents of children with disabilities, and other non-governmental institutions to jointly influence early intervention policy. The campaign seeks to strengthen legal and social support for children with disabilities through the development and implementation of comprehensive initiatives.

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Parents of Ukraine: early intervention in childhood - preventing disability in the future (Watch the video)

"The Unlimited Opportunities Weekend is a social and educational initiative that was conducted in Ukraine from 2017 to 2019 by United Nations agencies in partnership with the National Assembly of People with Disabilities of Ukraine (NAPWD) and the "It Should Be" movement. The initiative is aimed at raising public awareness of accessibility and inclusion, drawing attention to the importance of creating a society in which everyone has equal opportunities to participate in social, cultural and economic life.

In 2018, more than 40 establishments in 11 European countries joined the campaign, where about 30 themed events took place. As part of the flash mob initiative, various cafes, restaurants, theaters, cinemas, museums, and shopping and entertainment centers made their spaces and services accessible to visitors with disabilities and families with small children. For several days (from November 30 to December 3, 2018), the institutions not only adapted their services, but also held events that drew attention to the issue of accessibility.

Purpose and goals of the initiative :

• Raise public awareness of the importance of an accessible environment.
• Demonstrate to institutions and organizations the need to create inclusive spaces.
• Involve the public in discussing equal access to services for all citizens.

More information about the project can be found at website NAIA , Universal design and view the final video project on the UNDP Ukraine website. Additional material can be found at UNDP Exposure .

The Return to Life program is supported by the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) Office in Ukraine, the NATO Medical Rehabilitation Trust Fund, the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine and the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine. The initiative is aimed at providing rehabilitation to active and retired military and security and defense personnel of Ukraine who were injured during the anti-terrorist operation in eastern Ukraine.

The purpose of the program - Helping injured servicemen and women return to active life in society, facilitating their social adaptation and restoring their physical and psychological health.

The program included comprehensive rehabilitation measures, including physical therapy, psychological support, and adaptation training to help veterans and servicemen get back to their normal routine.

The initiative lasted two years and included 17 active rehabilitation camps, each lasting 12 days for a group of 10 participants.

The program was based on the peer-to-peer principle, with people with disabilities, including ATO veterans who had already undergone rehabilitation, as coaches and instructors. Thanks to this program, nearly 200 soldiers received support at the Western Rehabilitation Center.

View video about Camps active rehabilitation

As part of the project to develop early intervention services in Ukraine, a large-scale information campaign was conducted.

The goal is to raise awareness of the importance of early intervention for children with special needs and their families, as well as to expand public knowledge about supporting early childhood development.

Key events and achievements:

• Social advertising 343 billboards, 165 websites and 1250 metrolites were produced and placed in 31 cities in 11 regions of Ukraine, including Kharkiv, Dnipro, Odesa, Lviv, Zaporizhzhia and others.

• Production and distribution of brochures4 information brochures on early childhood development were published. The total circulation was 58,000 copies, which were distributed to early intervention centers and other interested organizations. Additional brochures are available for download on the project website.

• A website on RW issues: on the website www.rvua.com.ua materials for parents and professionals that promote the development of the early intervention system in Ukraine.

Campaign coverage

The information campaign reached more than 36 million people. More than 1.6 million users took part in the campaign through social media, which helped to raise public interest in supporting early childhood development.

"Reading on Equals is a charity project aimed at supporting children with visual impairments, implemented with the support of the Ukrainian Association of Temporary Press Publishers (UAPP) and the Talan Group of Marketing Services Agencies. The main idea of the project is to raise funds for the creation of tactile Braille books for visually impaired and blind children in Ukraine.

Goals and objectives 

The goal of the project is to make a significant contribution to the development and education of children with disabilities by uniting the efforts of the public. The tactile books were donated to specialized educational institutions and libraries to provide children with access to education and cultural development.

Results and achievements

• Financial support UAH 338 thousand was raised, which made it possible to produce 4200 copies of tactile books.
• Broad media support : the project was supported by 49 publishing companies and 118 different media outlets, which helped reach almost 31 million people through media publications.
• Scale of information dissemination: the circulation of information messages about the project amounted to 21.5 million copies, which helped to significantly raise awareness of the need for tactile books.

The project is gaining wide publicity, and thanks to the support of partners and concerned citizens, it will be able to raise funds to create books that promote educational opportunities for visually impaired children.

Read more about project | Video. project

The Football Without Limits project was implemented in Kyiv, Lviv, Kharkiv and Donetsk with the support of the Center for Access to Football in Europe (CAFE) as part of the UEFA International Project "EURO 2012: Respect Inclusion - Football Without Limits". The aim of the campaign was to draw public attention to the issues of accessibility for fans with disabilities and to remove barriers during the EURO 2012 matches.

Main activities and achievements of the project

• All-Ukrainian competition "Institution without barriers" The competition was held among public facilities in the cities hosting EURO 2012 (Kyiv, Lviv, Kharkiv, Donetsk). Volunteers inspected more than 1,100 establishments, assessing their accessibility for people with full disabilities. The facilities were assessed for compliance with the State Building Standards of Ukraine (SBS) and their accessibility for people with musculoskeletal, visual and hearing impairments.
• Audio descriptive commentary for blind fansEnabling blind fans to enjoy the matches through specially organized audio descriptive commentary, which made football accessible to people with visual impairments.

Project results

As part of the ceremony in Kyiv, the winners of the FACILITY WITHOUT BARRIERS competition were awarded, recognizing the best facilities working on accessibility for people with disabilities. This facility has become a key step in changing attitudes towards accessibility in Ukraine and has improved the conditions for people with disabilities to participate in sports events.

Overall, the winners of the Institution Without Barriers competition were as follows:

• in the nomination "Barrier-free stadium": "Donbass Arena, Donetsk; Consumer Choice Award - Metalist Stadium, Kharkiv;
• in the nomination "Barrier-free airport" the winner has not been determined; the Consumer Sympathy prize goes to Boryspil Airport;
• in the nomination "Barrier-free railway station"The winner has not been determined; the Consumer Sympathy Award was given to the railway station in Donetsk. Donetsk railway station;
• The Project volunteers monitored the accessibility of over 80 accommodation facilities (hotels, motels, dormitories, hostels) in 4 cities hosting Euro 2012. Only 26 of them were found to be accessible. In the nomination "Barrier-free accommodation facility"The "Consumer Choice" award went to the Ibis Hotel, Kyiv; the "Consumer Sympathy" award went to the Verkhovyna Hotel, Kyiv; in Kharkiv, the Kharkiv Palace Hotel won the "Barrier-Free Accommodation" competition; in Lviv, the Leopolis Hotel; and in Donetsk, the Shakhtar Plaza Hotel;
• The Project volunteers monitored the accessibility of over 350 catering establishments (restaurants, cafes, bars) in 4 cities hosting Euro 2012. Only 61 of them were accessible. As a result of the Contest, winners were determined in only 3 cities. In the nomination "Barrier-free catering facility"The winners are: in Kharkiv - MacDonald's restaurant; in Kyiv - MacDonald's restaurant; in Donetsk - MacDonald's restaurant. In Lviv, unfortunately, none of the restaurants can claim the title of "Restaurant without Barriers";
• The Project volunteers monitored the accessibility of over 120 medical facilities (emergency hospitals, clinics, pharmacies) in 4 cities hosting Euro 2012. Only 27 of them were found to be accessible, most of them being pharmacies. As a result of the competition, winners were selected in only 2 cities. In the nomination "Barrier-free medical facility" the winner in Kharkiv was Kharkiv City Clinical Multidisciplinary Hospital No. 17; in Donetsk - Pharmacy No. 6 of PJSC "Fitofarm" (all pharmacies of this chain are accessible to visitors with disabilities). The Consumer Sympathy Award went to Central City Clinical Hospital No. 3 in Donetsk. In Kyiv and Lviv, unfortunately, none of the medical institutions and none of the pharmacy chains can claim the title of "Institution without Barriers";
• The Project volunteers monitored the accessibility of over 60 cultural institutions (theaters, churches, museums) in 4 cities hosting Euro 2012. Only 19 of them were found to be accessible. As a result of the contest, winners were determined in only 3 cities. The winner in the nomination "A barrier-free cultural institution" in Kharkiv - Kharkiv State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater named after M. Lysenko; in Lviv - Lviv Regional Philharmonic; in Kyiv - Kyiv Academic Puppet Theater. In Donetsk, unfortunately, none of the cultural institutions can claim the title of "Institution without Barriers";
• The Project volunteers monitored the accessibility of over 450 consumer market and service establishments (shops, shopping centers, banks, gas stations, post offices) in 4 cities hosting Euro 2012. Of these, 95 were accessible. The winner in the nomination "A barrier-free consumer market and services facility" of the "Institution Without Barriers" competition in Kyiv - Ukrposhta Kyiv City Directorate; in Kharkiv - Mega-Antoshka Shopping Center; in Donetsk - Green Plaza Shopping Center; in Lviv - Opera Passage Shopping Center, as well as OKKO filling station of OJSC Concern Galnaftogaz;
• The Project volunteers monitored the accessibility of more than 50 entertainment venues (cinemas, nightclubs, discos, shopping and entertainment centers) in 4 cities hosting Euro 2012. Only 9 of them were accessible. The contest resulted in a winner in only one city. The winner in the nomination "A barrier-free entertainment venue" competition in Donetsk - Donetsk City Center shopping and entertainment center. In Kyiv, Lviv and Kharkiv, unfortunately, none of the entertainment venues can claim the title of "Venue Without Barriers".

Facilities that met the requirements received a special certificate of accessibility from the official UEFA project (the sticker "Facility without barriers").

Read more about project and contest | Video. about contest "Institution without barriers"