Takayama Declaration on the
Development of Communities-for-All
in Asia and the Pacific
Adopted on 26 November 2009, in Takayama, Japan
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The Social Development Division of the United Nations Economic and Social
Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and Takayama City, Gifu Prefecture,
Japan are jointly organizing the "ESCAP-Takayama Congress 2009 on
the Creation of an Inclusive and Accessible Community in Asia and the Pacific:
A Town Easy to Live in is a Town Easy to Visit" in Takayama, Japan,
from 24 to 26 November 2009.
The Congress aims to explore means and ways for the creation and sustainable development of inclusive and accessible communities in Asia and the Pacific, by learning lessons from experiences of the City of Takayama, Gifu Prefecture, Japan and other communities in the region.
Background
The City of Takayama in Gifu Prefecture, Japan, is an ancient city which first appeared in Japanese history around 400 A.D. Adjacent to the World Heritage, Shirakawa-Go village, the city is known for its preservation of traditional architecture and cultivation of traditional arts including wood sculpturing and carpentry as well as its majestic natural beauty. And yet, in the early 1990's, the City had suffered from a dearth of tourists and income.
To overcome any difficulties, the City put forward a vision for the creation of a City that is represented by the slogan, "A town easy to live in is a town easy to visit" in 1996. Accordingly, the City has conducted barrier-free monitoring tours and improved its accessibility in many respects, both in the public and private sector, responding to the needs of its ageing population and citizens with disabilities. As a result of these endeavors undertaken over the last 14 years, the City is now recognized both nationally and internationally as a leading barrier-free city, attracting visitors from around the world and enjoying the economic impact of an increasing number of visitors.
ESCAP has been spearheading regional efforts to forge a paradigm shift from a welfare to a human rights-based approach to disability, through two consecutive regional disability decades, the Asian Pacific Decades of Disabled Persons. The Biwako Millennium Framework for Action towards an Inclusive, Barrier-free and Rights-based Society for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific (BMF) and its supplement, the Biwako Plus Five, are the Decade's policy guidelines on disability to facilitate national policy formulation and implementation on disability. Through its work, ESCAP has been promoting the enhancement of accessibilities of built environments as well as information and services. Moreover, ESCAP is promoting ratification and implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which entered into force in May 2008 and which recognizes the right of accessibility for the first time in history.
Today, many policy makers and implementers are aware of the importance of accessibility improvement. However, many countries in Asia and the Pacific still do not have appropriate laws and technical regulations on accessibility in place. Moreover, policy makers and implementers are not motivated to improve accessibility, citing budgetary implications. The region needs a body of knowledge on model legislation, technical guidelines and good practices on accessibility improvement, particularly on how the Government can overcome the issue of financial burden.
As one possible solution, ESCAP has been promoting "accessible tourism" in the region through, several regional meetings - Bali, Indonesia, in 2000, Hainan Islands, China, in 2006 and Bangkok, Thailand, in 2007. "Accessible Tourism" refers to tourism that caters to the needs of a full range of consumers including persons with disabilities, older persons and cross-generational families. It entails removal of attitudinal and institutional barriers in society, and encompasses accessibility in the physical environment, in transportation, information and communications and other facilities and services. It encompasses publicly and privately owned tourist locations. The City of Takayama is a successful example of promoting accessible tourism, and a valuable presence as a model case in Asia and the Pacific area.
We look forward to your participation.
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