The Hon. Thanura Dissanayake

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, policymaking and decisions must be data-driven. As stated, our data on persons with disabilities is over a decade old. We must gather up-to-date data, with proper categorization, to design policies that ensure equal rights, improve lives, and integrate persons with disabilities into the economy.

¶ 02 Public transport and access points—including buses—are difficult not only for persons with disabilities but also for the general public; long-standing designs ignore accessibility. Hospitals too lack proper accessible design. We must introduce new policies for buildings and transport to ensure access.

¶ 03 Further, to link persons with disabilities to the modern economy, ICT access is essential. While the Budget has increased allowances, we must go further to connect them to information technology and modern tools suited to their economic status. Let us all work together to make them prosperous citizens living beautiful lives.