Nowon-gu Advances Plans for 'Disability-Friendly City' ... Including Installation of Disability-Friendly Hair Salons

770 Billion KRW Budget Allocated This Year to Create Disability-Friendly Cities, 50 Detailed Projects Across 3 Major Tasks... Nation's First Disability-Friendly Beauty Salon with Accessibility Facilities Installed... Seoul's First Autonomous District Implements Disability Electric Mobility Device Insurance Support... Increased Repair Cost Support Limit for Disability Mobility Devices, Expansion of Missing Prevention Program to All Registered Disabled, Promotion of Kiosk Installation for Visually Impaired, and More

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Nowon-gu (District Mayor Oh Seung-rok) is implementing various projects to create a disabled-friendly city this year, including the installation and operation of the nation’s first disabled-friendly beauty salon and enrolling disabled people in electric assistive device insurance.

The district aims to be a "disabled-friendly city where both people with disabilities and their families are happy," and is promoting 50 detailed projects under three major policy tasks. The budget allocated for these projects amounts to approximately 77 billion KRW this year. Many of these include policies and pilot projects that are being expanded based on the results of nationwide first attempts, expected to bring tangible changes that people with disabilities can feel directly.

First, the most notable is the installation of the nation’s first "disabled-friendly beauty salon." In December last year, the district enacted the "Ordinance on the Installation and Operation of Disabled-Friendly Hair and Beauty Facilities," the first of its kind nationwide, and plans to start operations in July this year. The beauty salon will be equipped with convenience facilities tailored for people with disabilities and staffed by professionals with a high awareness of disability.

This initiative was inspired by the fact that existing beauty salons lacked necessary equipment or convenience facilities for people with disabilities, and it was difficult to meet professional hairdressers with rich experience and awareness of disabilities, making visits reluctant. Beauty services provided mainly through welfare centers were mostly simple haircuts, making it difficult for users to express their individuality, and the service satisfaction was not very high.

The disabled-friendly beauty salon to be installed by the district will be located on the first floor, welcoming wheelchair users without stairs. The indoor space will be designed to avoid inconvenience for users with disabilities, including restrooms, lounges, and private spaces separated for privacy. It will be equipped with shampoo chairs and various equipment accessible to people with physical disabilities, and services will be provided by hair care experts with extensive awareness and experience regarding disabilities.

Next, in February this year, as a project to guarantee mobility rights for people with disabilities, the district will be the first autonomous district in Seoul to enroll in "electric assistive device insurance." Registered disabled residents of Nowon-gu will be insured by the district against accidents occurring while operating electric assistive devices such as electric wheelchairs or electric scooters, with the district covering the insurance premiums. In particular, following active expansion of infrastructure for outdoor activities for wheelchair users, such as creating barrier-free circular walking trails in Bulamsan and Yeongchuksan, it is expected to alleviate anxiety and economic burdens related to various electric wheelchair accidents.

Additionally, the support limit for repair costs of mobility devices for people with disabilities will be significantly increased. For low-income disabled individuals, the annual support for electric assistive device repairs will be expanded from 150,000 KRW to 300,000 KRW, and for general disabled individuals, from 100,000 KRW to 150,000 KRW. Disabled people using manual wheelchairs will also receive support up to 150,000 KRW for low-income individuals and 100,000 KRW for general individuals.

The missing person prevention project for people with disabilities will also be actively expanded. As a result of providing wandering detectors to 170 disabled individuals over the past two years, the number of missing person reports among people with disabilities in the area decreased by about 20% compared to the previous year. Accordingly, the district is considering expanding the target of the "missing person prevention project for people with disabilities" from the current intellectual, autism, and mental disabilities to all registered disabled individuals in Nowon-gu. The plan is to fundamentally prevent missing persons by providing wandering detectors to all registered disabled individuals at risk of disappearance. The missing person prevention project is scheduled to be implemented after September this year following preliminary investigations.

Finally, new projects will be launched for kiosk installation for people with visual and hearing impairments and on-site interpretation services for the visually impaired. First, in the first half of this year, a digital information kiosk will be installed on the first floor of the district office building. The kiosk, equipped with sign language videos, voice information, digital braille, and tactile features, will provide various information and convenience for visually and hearing-impaired individuals regarding facility guidance and daily life information. Additionally, on-site interpreters for the visually impaired will be assigned to public events hosted by Nowon-gu public institutions to promote social participation of visually impaired people.

Last October, the district published "Easy to Read, Healing Nowon," a district newsletter for people with developmental disabilities, the first of its kind among Seoul’s autonomous districts. The newsletter, created using language and pictures easy for people with developmental disabilities to understand, will diversify its content this year by involving parents of people with developmental disabilities as citizen reporters in its production. The easy-to-read newsletter is distributed to families of people with developmental disabilities through disability activity support providers and is stocked in 54 disability organizations and public institutions in the region, contributing to broadening understanding between people with and without disabilities.

Oh Seung-rok, Mayor of Nowon-gu, said, "We conduct an annual survey on the status of people with disabilities to identify their actual needs and those of their families," adding, "We will continue to create a warm and healthy welfare city where people with disabilities live together through various support projects."