QUESTIONNAIRE SLOVAK REPUBLIC

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

September 2007

 

Name: Branislav Mamojka

Organisation: Slovak Blind and Partially Sighted Union

Country: SLOVAK REPUBLIC

e-mail address: mamojka@unss.sk

Telephone number: +421-2-65420796


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 Other (explanation) Railway: reduced price for blind and free for guide
Bus between cities: reduced price for blind, reduced or free for guide
City transport: reduced or free for blind and guide depending on city
Air transport: no End answer
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.
Provision of auditory signals at crosswalks.  Answer Yes End answer
Answer  Other (explanation) Sound beacons, talking mobile telephone, GPS systems with talking mobile telephone  End answer
Don’t know.
 


2.4. Concerning accessibility / transport in general, what suggestions for improvement do you have?
Standardization of public information systems, in particular protocols for their remote controls,
Standardization of sound trafic signals at crossings,
Standardization of tactile pavements
Standardizatin of allowances or price reductions for blind, in particular for guides and guide dogs
(Standardization = standardization at least in EU)
Voice announcements inside and outside of vehicles of public transport
Availability of staff assistance when changing means of transport
disability awareness training of transport staff
Tactile edges of pavements (foot path), isles on crossing of roads, and platforms
Better funding and availability of mobility training
Accessible transport information.


3/ Employment


3.1. Are private companies under any obligation to recruit a certain number of disabled people?
Answer Yes 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  Other (explanation) Legislation about targeted wage subsidies is in preparation process, it should be in force from January 2008.
There is reduction of the part of health insurance of employee paid by employer.
The part of disability insurance of employee paid by employer is not paid in the case of disabled employee.  End answer
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  Yes (explanation) Financial support to create and run the sheltered workshop and the sheltered working places. End answer


3.6. What is the situation with regard to the employment of blind and partially sighted women:
Under-employment.
Discrimination in recruitment.
Discrimination in wages.
Answer  Don’t know; As I know, there is no evidence of discriminatory factors directly related to blindness of women. There is discrimination of women in general which is combined with discrimination of blind people in general. End answer

3.7. Concerning employment in general, what kind of suggestion for improvement do you have?
Answer Enhanced supported employment opportunities
Improvement of job retaining and job development supporting measures including training and availability of state-of-art access technology
New vocational training and retraining schemes available to visually impaired people
Increasing awareness of employers about employment possibilities and needs of people with visual impairment.  End answer



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
Answer  Other (explanation) All above support is insufficient and under development. In particular there is a great lack of specialized teachers for main stream education. The service to transcribe books to Braille has low capacity and long delivery time. End answer
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?
Answer Centralized service providing adapted text books for all level and forms of education
Availability of teaching and study documents from publishers in electronic text formats
Establishment of mainstream support by itinerant teachers and/or teaching assistants. End answer
 



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.Answer Yes   End answer 
Improve existing centres. Answer Yes   End answer
Increase the capacity of the centre.
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
Answer  Other (explanation) The rehabilitation centre for visually impaired is state centre providing services to people in working age.
The Slovak Blind and Partially Sighted Union provides rehabilitation on field base through its regional centres. There is needed creation of more supportive legal conditions, better financing enabling stabilization of staff and its professional development, and increase of capacity and decrease delivery time. End answer
Don’t know.


5.3. Have you noted any progress in these areas?
Answer  Yes,  Progress is mainly in transfer of new knowledge and methods and development of field based rehabilitation (through our regional centres). Important are EU financed projects both before and after accession to EU. 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  Yes  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, This is provided by the above mentioned state rehabilitation centre for visually impaired (only one centre for both purposes). 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.
Provision of Braille writing devices. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of adapted electronic devices. Answer Yes End answer
Support by specially trained teachers.
Answer  Other (explanation) Support is even less sufficient as that for main stream education, in particular concerning Braille books and specialized teachers. As format for study materials electronic format is prefered by students still more and more.  End answer
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?
Answer Improvement of condition for participation in mainstream vocational training and inclusion on free labour market  End answer
 


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 There exists financial support to purchase equipment. the scheme according to the Social assistance act (195/1998) is for personal use (including students). The support depends on decision of competent authority (office of labour, social affairs and family) and depends on income (obvious! 80 - 95% of price). The scheme according to the Act of employment services (5/2004) is for employers to create sheltered workshop or individual sheltered (supported?) working place (in integrated environment). According to the approved project of that working place they can get financial support for establish it from which also ICT technology can be financed. 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 The same as above. 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 It is still improving. The main problems are form to be filled and captcha. There is Act of information of public administration (275/2006) which starts with some regulations of web accessibility and from august 2008 stronger measures of it will come in force. End answer


8.2. Is your government doing anything to make E-government websites accessible to blind and partially sighted people?
Answer Yes
(Please explain):  There is above mentioned Act of information systems of public administration. There is cooperation with our organization and Ministry of finances responsible of informatization of society, we are involved in testing of web accessibility.  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 During accession period legislation had to be modified and enhanced. E.g. Act about equal treatment 365/2004 (antidiscriminationact) implementing Directives 78/2000 and 43/2000.
Transposition of Directives like that about Braille labelling of medicines.
application of Directive about rights of passengers with reduced mobility in air transport.
Exchange of experience, influence of EU antidiscrimination and equal opportunity policy, EU co-financed projects focused on issues interesting visually impaired people, inspiration, ideas, documents, position papers, explanations, good practice for use in our legislation initiatives, implementation activities, negotiations and campaigns.
Influence of development of public awareness. End answer




10/ Finally, do you have any expectations with regard to:

10. Do you have expectations with regard to:
Employment. Answer Yes End answer
Education. Answer Yes End answer
Vocational training. Answer Yes End answer
Rehabilitation centres. Answer Yes End answer
Transport/mobility. Answer Yes End answer
Accessibility of buildings and traffic lanes. Answer Yes End answer
Access to information (accessibility of ICTs. Answer Yes End answer
Financial support. Answer Yes End answer
Gender equality. Answer Yes End answer
Other (please explain):
 Answer Standardization in all above mentioned fields of interest.  End answer

 

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