A team from the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) was dispatched to Southwest China's Sichuan province from June 24 to 28 to inspect work on building barrier-free environments.

Barrier-free environments are aimed at improving the daily lives of elderly citizens and those living with disabilities through the construction of accessible facilities, accessible information exchanges and the provision of social services.  

He Baoxiang, vice-chairman of the CPPCC National Committee, participated in some of the inspection activities and delivered a speech at a symposium held in Yibin city.

The team visited communities, government service centers, public venues, communities, transport hubs and the homes of disabled and elderly citizens in the cities of Yibin, Zigong, and Leshan. They also engaged in discussions with disabled and elderly citizens, as well as representatives of government departments at provincial, municipal and county levels, communities and enterprises to learn about current provision of accessible services and gather opinions and suggestions.

The team acknowledged the efforts of the local governments in accelerating the transformation to an age-friendly society and promoting the construction of an accessible environment. Greater efforts are needed to achieve the goals set in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) and the law on the building of a barrier-free environment, they added, calling for more exploration and practical measures to create replicable and promotable practices and standards in this drive.

The team stressed that age-friendly transformation and barrier-free environment construction are both livelihood and systematic projects, which require the concerted efforts of government departments and all sectors of society. They said governments at all levels should prioritize these jobs as key components of the development of social services.

Fully tapping into the role of the market to boost the development of the industry, fostering a specialized team and raising public awareness are also needed, the team said.