El conseller de Salut, Marta Villanueva, emphasized the role of the city
The Minister of Health, Disability, and Loneliness Strategy of the Barcelona City Council, Marta Villanueva, presented the new technical accessibility office created by the council to ensure equal accessibility throughout the city and «continue to be a pioneering city in this regard.»
She said this Thursday at a press conference, where she pointed out that «165,000 people in Barcelona have a recognized disability, and 25% of the population has mobility difficulties in their environment.»
«We work under the idea that making a city accessible is essential for 10% of people, necessary for 25%, and beneficial for 100%,» she explained.
This new body, which is already operational within the Municipal Institute for People with Disabilities (IMPD), is made up of a team of ten professionals including architects, communication technicians, and accessible project managers.
For all these reasons, she emphasized that «when we talk about accessibility, we think of architectural barriers, but there are also communicative and cognitive barriers, and it is important that we face these challenges.»
Grants and Training
With this initiative, the council aims for accessibility to be present at all levels of administration and in major city and neighborhood projects.
The office will launch a grant program to improve accessibility in homes, with an initial call in 2026 funded with four million euros, benefiting around 6,000 people.
The initiative will include an accessibility school with technical and communicative training for municipal staff and public service professionals, in collaboration with sector entities.
The office is already drafting the 2027-2035 accessibility plan and will actively involve entities in the field of disabilities. It will be a plan that «will be added to other city plans, such as Neighborhoods, Addressing, or Living,» according to Villanueva.