As a lower middle income country, Bangladesh has still been facing challenges in fulfilling the rights of people with visual impairment because the employment opportunities for the people with visual impairment is remain limited despite the government and international donor organizations are providing support to these communities. With approximately one million visually impaired people in Bangladesh, the visually impaired people are facing systemic barriers in education, training and employment because of lacking of accommodations, social stigma, superstition, weak employment policies for the disabled etc. This paper examines the laws and policies for the people with visual impairment in Bangladesh focusing on the major legislatives initiatives including The Rights and Protection of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2013, The Disability Act 2001, Ratification of UNCRPD, 2007 and other legal frameworks for the people with disabilities in Bangladesh. This study addressed key challenges including inaccessible educational materials, attitudinal barriers, lack of accommodations, weak enforcement abilities, lack of advocacy for the employment of visually impaired in Bangladesh. To explore the legal frameworks of different countries for the people with visual impairment, the study conducted a comparative analysis with employment policies in the UK and the USA that addressed the major gaps in Bangladesh in particular in assistive technology, vocational training, government support and social response. The paper recommended that the government should reform the existing policies and suggested to implement a visually impaired oriented employment act and increase the training programs. The paper also recommended that the government should establish a dedicated Visual Impairment Employment Taskforce to reduce the employment challenges for the people with visually impaired. By addressing these issues and implementing these suggestions, Bangladesh can ensure the inclusive society and minimize the employment discrimination for the people with visual impairment.
Parvez Miah (Tue,) studied this question.