TEHRAN – A guided tour has taken hearing-impaired people to several museums and historical places in downtown Tehran.

“It is the first special tour which is dedicated to the people with hearing loss in Theran”, IRNA reported.  

The event was arranged by Iranian tour guide Hamed Niasari who has a hearing impairment, the report said.

In 2019, Si-e Tir St., a historical stone-paved one-way thoroughfare in downtown Tehran, was designated as an accessible tourism destination for all people by the Ministry of Tourism.

Introduced by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the creation of the international “Accessible Tourism Destination” aims to make sure that a destination can be enjoyed by any tourist including physically-impaired people.

The UNWTO Recommendations on Accessible Tourism for All are meant to be used as a general, basic mainstreaming framework for ensuring that people with disabilities have access to the physical environment, the transportation system, information, and communications channels, as well as to a wide range of public facilities and services.

As mentioned by the World Tourism Organization, accessibility for all tourism facilities, products, and services should be a central part of any responsible and sustainable tourism policy. Accessibility is not only about human rights. It is a business opportunity for destinations and companies to embrace all visitors and enhance their revenues.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 15% of the world’s population (1 billion people) lives with some form of disability.

AFM