Brovary on the way to barrier-free: the community plans to invest more than 51 million hryvnias in comfort for all residents

The executive committee of the Brovary City Council has prepared a draft program for creating a barrier-free space in the Brovary territorial community for 2025-2029. The total amount of funding for 5 years will amount to more than UAH 51 million. Brovarsky Mayor Igor Sapozhko told about where the local authorities plan to spend these funds in an exclusive comment to UNN.

The draft program provides that more than UAH 18.5 million will be allocated for the creation of a barrier – free space in the community in 2025, more than UAH 8.5 million in 2026, UAH 10.5 million in 2027, and more than UAH 7 million in 2029.

Local authorities plan to spend UAH 43.4 million on the introduction of physical barrier-free operation during the specified period , in particular:

• for information barrier-free measures - more than UAH 1.5 million, 
• for the introduction of digital accessibility-more than UAH 1.1 million, 
• for educational barrier – free-5 million hryvnias.

"I hope that the city council will support the project of burnout on barrier-free at the next session. This is an extremely important initiative for our community, because it is aimed at creating comfortable conditions for all residents, regardless of their physical capabilities. Brovary should become a city of equal opportunities, where everyone – from children to the elderly – will feel comfortable and safe. Barrier – free is not only an infrastructure, but also an indicator of the development of a community that cares about everyone," Igor Sapozhko said.

According to him, now about 15% of the community's residents experience daily difficulties during independent movement, receiving services, necessary information, or navigating in space. We are talking in particular about people with disabilities and temporary health disorders.

"This program aims to raise public awareness of equality and non-discrimination, as well as to include all groups of the population in the life of our community. Its goal is to ensure equal access to public and civil facilities, transport, education, culture, work, Sports, Social Services and information for all residents. The program is also designed to strengthen responsibility for violating the rights of people with disabilities and encourage the removal of barriers that prevent them from exercising their rights," Igor Sapozhko stressed.

Among other things, the draft program provides for improving the accessibility of shelters for people with disabilities in 2025-2029, reconstruction of the pool of the KP "Health and rehabilitation center" so that people in wheelchairs can freely visit it. In addition, it is planned to equip ramps and lifts of a number of other buildings, including residential ones, as well as continue the development of road transport infrastructure.

Also, the local authorities plan next year to carry out major repairs of the passenger elevator in the local hospital and routine repairs of ramp thresholds in the surgical building, infectious diseases department, consultation and Diagnostic Center, at the entrance to the women's consultation, etc.  in 2026, it is also planned to replace the hospital elevator, but with a passenger-cargo one. In addition, by 2030, it is planned to repair the bathrooms of the medical institution, taking into account the needs of people with disabilities.

This is not the whole list of measures that local authorities plan to implement in order to increase accessibility in the Brovary community. But the project of the five-year  program demonstrates the serious intention of the city authorities to make life in society accessible and comfortable for all categories of the population. Investing in physical, information, digital and educational barriers, as well as improving the infrastructure of hospitals, shelters and road transport facilities, is an important step towards the development of an "Equal Opportunity community".

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Earlier UNN reported that the city government of Brovary is developing a program for 4-5 years to improve the accessibility and comfortable movement of people with disabilities. In particular, the Brovarsky community plans to equip special lifts for people with disabilities in apartment buildings. According to the Mayor Igor Sapozhko, this option is optimal for old apartment buildings of the community.

Olena Hakobyan , an adviser to the mayor of Brovary, told UNNthat all state institutions in Brovary are available for people with disabilities. All major shopping centers are equipped with ramps, elevators, and hygiene rooms for people with disabilities. Various commercial institutions and organizations have become more likely to seek advice on how to properly equip or redo entrances so that they are accessible to people with disabilities.

In addition, a project on diving rehabilitation is being implemented in the city for Ukrainian military personnel who lost their limbs defending Ukraine from Russian invaders, family members of the victims, internally displaced persons and veterans.