Wire desk byline Sourced from Xinhua, Dawn, Arab News, Anadolu and Minute Mirror. Translated and abridged by the GSRRA Desk.
Islamabad airport becomes Pakistan’s first to introduce measures for passengers with mental disability
Immigration officers check documents of passengers before they board a flight at the Islamabad International Airport on January 10, 2025. (AFP/File)
- Sunflower ribbons issued to eligible passengers will ensure preferential treatment at all counters
- HRW estimates number of people living with disabilities in Pakistan varies from 3.3 million to 27 million
Islamabad Airport has introduced a special facility for passengers with “mental disorders,” the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said this week, making it the first airport in the country to offer such services.
This move aligns with international trends in making air travel more inclusive and reflects growing awareness in Pakistan about mental health needs, particularly in high-stress environments like airports.
“Islamabad International Airport is honored to provide special facilities to passengers with mental disorders,” the CAA said in a statement.
A special sunflower ribbon will be issued to people with “invisible disabilities,” the CAA said, so that they were eligible for “preferential facilities at every counter.”
“Children with autism and other mental disorders are benefiting from the facility,” the statement added.
According to Human Rights Watch, estimates of the number of people living with disabilities in Pakistan wildly vary from 3.3 million to 27 million.
Pakistan has enacted a Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act to protect and promote the rights of people with disabilities.
The Pakistani government has implemented policies and programs, including the National Policy for Persons with Disabilities (2002) and the National Plan of Action for Persons with Disabilities (2006), aimed at addressing the needs of people with disabilities.
Several organizations, including the National Council for the Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons (NCRDP), provincial councils, and disability-focused NGOs, are working to improve the lives of people with disabilities in Pakistan.
Reference Link:- https://www.arabnews.com/node/2596668/pakistan
Zamir Ahmed Awan is the founder and Chair of the Global Silk Route Research Alliance, a think tank in Islamabad. He studied engineering at Shanghai University in the 1980s, and years later he went back to China as Pakistan's science counsellor in Beijing, from 2010 until 2016, working on science and higher education cooperation between the two countries.…
