A National Register for Persons with Disabilities

Mr. Speaker,

Having a disability should never disqualify anyone from accessing and experiencing every aspect of life! There are roughly 3,500 persons in Bermuda who have a disability. This Government intends to ensure that all persons with disabilities are provided with the services they need to feel included in society and start with an equal playing field to carry out day-to-day activities/employment/volunteering in comparison to persons who do not have disabilities.

Mr. Speaker,

I rise this morning to share gratifying news that the Office of Ageing and Disability Services has successfully delivered a first-time-ever Disability Register for persons with disabilities in Bermuda. This initiative meets the commitment made by the Government in its 2021 Speech from the Throne. The primary purpose of developing a national register for persons with disabilities or a Disability Register, is to create a path for a more inclusive society. Collecting the relevant data about persons with disabilities can ultimately be used to make key informed decisions for introducing new and/or enhancing existing programmes and services for persons with disabilities.

Mr. Speaker,

According to the United Nations (UN), persons with disabilities make up approximately 15% of the world’s population. Globally, this is approximately 150 million people, which means almost one in five persons who are living with a disability encounter significant challenges in their daily lives. The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities adopts a broad categorization of persons with disabilities and reaffirms that persons with all types of disabilities must enjoy all human rights and fundamental freedoms, which Bermuda is in the process of ratifying.

Mr. Speaker,

The Bermuda Disability Register is a centralized repository comprising key information about the different types of disabilities persons are challenged with, which will in turn the data and information will be analyzed to identify gaps in the areas of programmes, services and special equipment needed for persons with disabilities. The Disability Register will also ensure there is easier access to services and assistance to improve the lives of persons with disabilities. The Disability Register will not be used for case management or as a case management tool but will hold information and data using digital technology. This data will ultimately facilitate informed policies and decisions in key areas such as health care, education, employment, and accessibility to advance inclusivity in Bermuda.

Mr. Speaker,

The United Nations highlights the fact that evidence and experience show that when barriers to inclusion are removed and persons with disabilities are empowered to participate fully in societal life, the entire community benefits. Barriers faced by persons with disabilities are, therefore, a detriment to society as a whole, and inclusion and accessibility are necessary to achieve progress and development for all.

Mr. Speaker,

Last year April 2023, the Ministry initiated a meeting through the Deputy Governor’s Office with representatives from the UK Foreign Commonwealth Development Office and requested that the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities be extended to Bermuda. This Convention was passed by the United Nations in 2006. It sets out key rights that citizens of a country with a disability should enjoy including living independently and being recognized and respected as persons for their ability, not their disability.

Since last year, the Ministry team has been diligently working with the Head of the International Disability Unit in the UK Cabinet Office responding to a comprehensive list of questions pertaining to measures that have been implemented in Bermuda to support persons with disabilities. Sufficient information was finally obtained in March 2024 from organizations in the private sector and public sector entities for review by the Head of the International Disability Unit at the UK Cabinet Office. The UK Foreign Commonwealth Development Office shared that a response to the request that the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities be extended to Bermuda should be obtained by the end of June this year.

Mr. Speaker,

No person in our society should be left behind or feel ostracized because they have a disability. The Government encourages dialogue on all forms of disabilities. This provides a platform to educate all sectors of our community to ensure persons with disabilities are given the dignity they deserve.  I believe that more education and awareness will ultimately lead to greater understanding and acceptance of persons with disabilities.

Mr. Speaker,

In November 2023, technical officers in the office of Ageing & Disability Services accessed the consultancy services of CSB Tech Emporium which is a web, mobile and software development agency in the Bahamas. The consultancy service was fully funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Multi-Country Office in Jamaica to lend technical support to Bermuda for the development of a Disability Register. Since January this year, there has been steady collaborative work involving the consulting firm, the Government’s IT office, technical officers in Ageing and Disability Services and specialists in disability services in the private sector to create, deliver and test a Disability Register App for Bermuda.

Mr. Speaker,

Currently, Bermuda does not have a legal disability framework as in other jurisdictions. For example, the Jamaica Disability Council operates an established disability register as stipulated by its Disability Act 2014. The Bahamas has a National Commission for Persons with Disabilities a statutory body that represents the community of persons with disabilities and also stakeholders. The Commission in the Bahamas is steered by the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities) Act 2014.

Therefore, in the absence of a legal framework for Bermuda, the first step in the planning process for developing a Disability Register for Bermuda was to obtain legal counsel from the Attorney-General’s Chambers relating to the collection of information from persons with disabilities. Chambers duly advised and technical officers widely communicated that information collected would be considered highly confidential, and would be securely stored; to be used only for the express purposes of supporting informed decision-making for improving and guiding policy in healthcare, education, and accessibility initiatives, and facilitate targeted support and delivery of resources to the community.

Mr. Speaker,

The introduction of the Disability Register shows that Bermuda is making national changes to improve its existing level of compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. This advancement also demonstrates to the UK that the Government remains committed to supporting persons with disabilities and is preparing the country and its people for when the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is extended to Bermuda.

Mr. Speaker,

The Government has advanced its vision for strengthened services, opportunities, and policies for persons with disabilities, with the historic launch of a first-ever National Disability Register mobile application. The launch was held on the steps of City Hall on Wednesday, April 24th, 2024. I stood there on the steps along with the UNDP Assistant Resident representative, Ms. Kimberley Wilson, very proud to proclaim that Bermuda was intentionally serving its population of persons with disabilities.

Mr. Speaker,

I was so gratified to see the many persons with disabilities who attended and were excited that the Government was valuing who they were. Mr. Speaker, I started to read this statement this morning by saying that: having a disability should never disqualify anyone from accessing and experiencing every aspect of life. At the launch of the Mobile Disability Register App, persons with disabilities who attended truly felt valued. This was evidenced by the many hugs and smiles they were giving to the Ministry team and representatives from the many organizations who were present. It was a moving experience on that day.

Mr. Speaker,

The launch of the Disability Register Mobile App included an outdoor registration period on the lawn of the City Hall which was attended by scores of persons in the community, including parents and caregivers. Persons who registered using the Disability App on that day were provided with gift vouchers. Since registration was voluntary, the gift vouchers served as an incentive to encourage persons to register. The launch was the first in a series of registration drives to register persons with disabilities on the mobile application digitally. It provided a knowledge Fair attended by various organizations which provide services, products, and programmes to persons with disabilities in our community.

During the launch, sixty-seven (67) persons with disabilities registered on the mobile App. Also, the Ministry team along with the Consultant were there to help and answer any questions about the Disability Register App. To-date a total of 71 persons have registered.

Mr. Speaker,

With any new initiative, there are always areas of improvements observed during the rollout phase. As such, since the launch of the Disability Register App, upgrades have been made to the platform to improve the performance and optimization of the mobile application. The mobile App is now available for download from both the Apple App Store and Google Play Stores. Or, the web link can be downloaded at https://link-to.app/BDAregister. As an example of the Disability Register’s App’s function and capability, an inclusive text-to-speech feature translates written text on the App to voice so that the words can be heard by individuals with visual impairments.

Mr. Speaker,

In July/August this year, the Office of Ageing and Disability Services will host another incentive-based registration drive to give persons with disabilities and/or their families the opportunity to register. Data collected during the next island-wide registration drives will build the database and also serve as an opportunity to further develop the App to a comparable product with our counterparts in other jurisdictions. Over time, the intent is to set up kiosks in various accessible locations throughout our community where persons can register at their leisure. The broader vision is to scale the digital application to offer job listings, to provide notices of natural disasters, to provide deaf interpretation and in time provide accessible transportation options for persons with disabilities.

Mr. Speaker,

The Office of Ageing & Disability Services will be responsible for overseeing, updating and maintaining the database. Staff have been trained on how to use the application and register persons with disabilities. Ongoing training will be provided for the upkeep and support of the custom mobile application and web dashboard to effectively manage the data. The consultancy firm will continue to provide technical and maintenance support via contractual agreement for a finite period to provide continuous functionality, timely updates and technical support, all of which are crucial for the smooth operation of the digital platform.

Mr. Speaker,

The UNDP, which declared its support for innovation-led digital solutions to advance social development in countries, recently financed the development of an AccessAbility mobile app for the Government of The Bahamas. In expanding its programmatic footprint in Bermuda, UNDP will build on the successes and lessons learned from The Bahamas. The digital solutions are financed under UNDP’s Social Resilience and Inclusion portfolio in its 2022 to 2026 multi-country programme.