QUESTIONNAIRE FINLAND

EBU Questionnaire Survey on the situation of blind and partially sighted people
across the 27 EU Member States

September 2007

 

Name: Timo Kuoppala

Organisation: Finnish Federation of Visually Impaired

Country: Finland

e-mail address: timo.kuoppala

Telephone number: +358-50-352 1395


1/ Benefits


1.1. Does your country have any form of benefits system/ allowance for blind or partially sighted people?
Answer Yes End answer

1.2. If yes, is this allowance sufficient or does it need to be increased ?
Answer Needs to be increased End answer


2/ Transport / Mobility

 
2.1. Does your country provide blind and partially sighted people with any form of assistance for access to public transportation?
Answer Yes End answer

2.2. If yes, in what form?
 

2.2.1. Facilities allowing a better accessibility of public transport for blind and partially sighted people:
Answer Yes End answer

2.2.2. Financial aid:
Answer Yes End answer

2.2.3. If yes, is this assistance available :
At reduced cost.
Free of charge Answer Yes End answer  
Other (please explain)
Don’t know.
 


2.3. Are there any measures facilitating the mobility of blind of partially sighted people?
Answer Yes End answer

 2.3.1 If yes, are they:

Financing of guide dogs. Answer Yes End answer
Tactile paving.  Answer Yes End answer
Provision of auditory means of communication. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of auditory signals at crosswalks.  Answer Yes End answer
Other (please explain)
Don’t know.
 


2.4. Concerning accessibility / transport in general, what suggestions for improvement do you have?
 


3/ Employment


3.1. Are private companies under any obligation to recruit a certain number of disabled people?
Answer No End answer

3.2. Are some jobs reserved in priority for:

3.2.1. Disabled people?
Answer No End answer

3.2.2. Blind or partially sighted people?
Answer No End answer


3.3. Are there any targeted wage subsidies or bonus for employers who recruit blind and partially sighted people?
Bonus.
Targeted wage subsidies. Answer  Yes End answer
Other (please explain)
Don’t know.


3.4. Does your country have sheltered workshops or any other kind of structure employing only blind and partially sighted people?
Answer  Yes End answer

3.5. Are there any other incentives in your country to facilitate blind and partially sighted people’s employment?
Answer  Don’t know  End answer


3.6. What is the situation with regard to the employment of blind and partially sighted women:
Under-employment. Answer  Yes End answer
Discrimination in recruitment.
Discrimination in wages.
Don’t know

3.7. Concerning employment in general, what kind of suggestion for improvement do you have?
 



4/ Education


4.1. Does your country have specialized schools for blind of partially sighted children?
Answer  Yes End answer

4.2. Is it possible for blind of partially sighted children to attend mainstream schools?
Answer Yes End answer

4.2.1. If yes, are there any support services for blind and partially sighted children?

Provision of books in Braille. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of Braille writing devices. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of adapted electronic devices. Answer Yes End answer
Support by specially trained teachers. Answer Yes  End answer
Other (please explain)
Don’t know.



4.3. Can blind or partially sighted students at university benefit from some form of financial aid to purchase an adapted computer?
Answer Yes End answer


4.4. With regard to education in general, what kind of suggestions for improvement do you have?
 



5. REHABILITATION CENTRES FOR BLIND AND PARTIALLY SIGHTED PEOPLE


5.1. Does your country have any rehabilitation centre for blind or partially sighted people?
Answer Yes End answer 

5.2. Concerning rehabilitation centres, what suggestions for improvement do you have?
Increase the number of centres. 
Improve existing centres. Answer Yes   End answer
Increase the capacity of the centre. Answer Yes   End answer
Improve the training of staff (auxiliary nursing staff, special education teacher …) Answer Yes   End answer
Modernise the methods of rehabilitation to daily life. Answer Yes  End answer
Modernise professional training. Answer Yes End answer
Other (please explain)
Don’t know.


5.3. Have you noted any progress in these areas?
Answer  Don’t know  End answer


5.3.1. If no, did you notice a decline in the quality of the rehabilitation measures for blind and partially sighted people?
Answer  Don’t know  End answer

 

6/ VOCATIONAL TRAINING


6.1. Does your country have a specialized vocational training centre for employed or unemployed blind and partially sighted people?
Answer Yes End answer

6.2. Can blind or partially sighted employed or unemployed people attend mainstream vocational training centres?
Answer Yes End answer

6.3. If yes, are there any support services for the blind and partially sighted?
Provision of books in Braille. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of Braille writing devices. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of adapted electronic devices. Answer Yes End answer
Support by specially trained teachers. Answer Yes End answer
Other (please explain).
Don’t know.

6.4. Have these measures been adopted since your country’s accession to the EU or did they exist before?
Answer Old End answer

6.5. With regard to vocational training in general, what kind of suggestions for improvement do you have?
 


 

7. ACCESSIBILITY OF ICTs


7.1. Is it possible to obtain support for ICTs for blind people of all age categories:
At school. Answer Yes End answer
At university. Answer Yes End answer
At work. Answer Yes End answer
At home. Answer Yes End answer
What kind of support ? (Please explain)
Answer Support is offered mainly by The Finnish Federation of the Visually Impaired and the costs are cowered by the finnish government. End answer


7.2. Is it possible to obtain support for ICTs for partially sighted people of all age categories ?
At school. Answer Yes End answer
At university. Answer Yes End answer
At work. Answer Yes End answer
At home. Answer Yes End answer
What kind of support ? (Please explain)
Answer  Same as mentioned in 7.1. End answer




8/ E-GOVERNMENT

8.1. How do you evaluate the accessibility of public websites (E-government; documents, forum, services, interactive pages, etc.)
Very good.
Good. 
Answer Medium.  End answer
Bad.
Very bad.

(Please explain): Answer problems with pdf-format and unusable forms. End answer 


8.2. Is your government doing anything to make E-government websites accessible to blind and partially sighted people?
Answer Yes End answer

(Please explain): Answer in principle our government is willing to improve the situation, but the process is very slow and .there are no regulations for the different authorities, only recommendations. End answer 

 


9/ EU INFLUENCE

9. Do you think that the EU has had a positive influence on the situation of blind and partially sighted people in your country ?
Answer Yes End answer

(Please explain): Answer our government and authorities have to follow Eu-regulations. End answer 

 

10/ Finally, do you have any expectation with regard to your country’s belonging to the EU?


10. Do you have expectations with regard to:
Employment.
Education.
Vocational training.
Rehabilitation centres.
Transport / mobility.
Accessibility of buildings and traffic lanes.
Access to information (accessibility of ICTs)
Financial support.
Gender equality.
Other (please explain)
 

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