Accessibility for All

This years International Day of Persons With Disabilities， which falls on December 3， focuses on the theme—Inclusion Matters： Access and Empowerment for People of All Abilities—a notion that has increasingly resonated with Chinese people.

In China， there are more than 85 million people living with disabilities. Improving their livelihoods concerns social justice， progress and the realization of the countrys goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all aspects by 2020.

President Xi Jinping explained that China will carry out development plans targeting women， children， people with disabilities and ethnic minorities while speaking at a poverty reduction forum in Beijing in October. This statement is one of the latest testaments to the special attention paid to disability issues by the Chinese Government.

The government has always attached great importance to the inclusion of people with disabilities in the process of development. The first law on the protection of their rights and interests was put in place in the 1990s. Later， a series of regulations guaranteeing their rights in fields such as education and employment were enacted.

The government has tried to improve basic public services and provide more vocational training and rehabilitation opportunities for indi- viduals with disabilities so as to enable them to get better jobs， enjoy better lives and play more active roles in society.

In addition to efforts directed at promoting the social and political participation of people with disabilities domestically， China is committed to international cooperation in this critical area. During the 2014 APEC meeting in Beijing， China hosted events on equal access and inclusive development and initiated the APEC Group of Friends on Disability.

Premier Li Keqiang proposed the inclusion of disability issues into the Asia-Europe cooperation framework at the 10th Asia-Europe Meeting （ASEM） in Milan last year. China fulfilled Lis proposal by hosting the first ASEM event on disability in Beijing on October 29-30.

Currently， China still lags behind Western countries regarding disability services. This is largely due to a gap in economic development. With the growth of the Chinese economy， the gap will gradually be filled.

The differences also leave large room for exchange and cooperation. Notably， the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development， which China and other countries formulated mindful of the need to promote social and economic cooperation inclusive of people with disabilities， has outlined specific objectives for global empowerment efforts in the coming years.