Mark Dyer (left) and Faisal Muhammad Al Kooheji addressing the gathering.
Doha: Accessibility improvements in Qatar — and the areas where the nation must look to improve — ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 have been spotlighted during a talk at Qatar Foundation’s Education City.
Representatives from the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy and Qatar Social and Cultural Centre for the Blind discussed the accessibility services which will be available during the tournament at an event hosted by Qatar National Library.
It highlighted the accessibility leap Qatar has achieved over the past 10 years — in terms of staff training, equipment, transportation, and accommodation, and what services will be offered to ensure all fans enjoy matches regardless of their abilities — while also hearing from the audience about steps which can be taken to make the tournament and the nation more accessible.
“We worked with different stakeholders and partners to ensure an all-round accessible experience for a vast volume of people with disabilities coming to Qatar to attend the games,” said accessibility and inclusivity design adviser Mark Dyer, a programme management consultant at the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy.
“Starting from the operational processes, we ensured that trained staff with the knowledge and experience are available to support a wide range of physical and sensory disabilities, as well as offering equipment like wheelchairs for easy mobility in the aircraft, then at the airport.”
Dyer pointed to transportation and accommodation as areas where accessibility in Qatar has made significant advances. Qatar, he said, had only three low-floor buses eight years ago, with that number having reached 858 today, while the number of hotels offering accessible rooms has increased from five to 70.
Faisal Muhammad Al Kooheji, Chairman of Qatar Social and Cultural Centre for the Blind (QSCCB), and a disability-rights activist, shed light on prominent events that kick-started Qatar’s rehearsals for accessibility during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 — hosting the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships in Doha, and establishing the Accessibility Forum.
“The forum allowed civil institutions like QSCCB and many other centres that represent individuals with disabilities to discuss the most significant challenges people with disabilities could face during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, and share their insight on finding solutions,” said Al Kooheji.
He also explained the pros and cons of platforms based on impressions and feedback from visually impaired users when using the FIFA portal for ticket booking and Qatar’s Hayya portal, saying: “The platforms are considered accessible, yet getting through the CAPTCHA test is challenging, and navigating the websites can be complicated for visually impaired people.”
Another concern raised during the event related to the application used to scan electronic tickets at the gates and its incompatibility with screen reading programs, which represents a challenge for visually impaired users to use it without the need for support.
Al Kooheji also highlighted services offered at the stadiums, saying, “When booking an accessibility ticket, it provides an additional free of charge seat for the companion next to a fan with a disability to attend the games.
“Priority lines are given for fans with disabilities and pregnant women to facilitate their journey to stadiums. Also, trained volunteers are available to provide help, and this is one of the lessons that we built on from the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup.”
