Living in Geneva for handicapped people

Culture and leisure activities

Ensuring access to culture for handicapped people is a major challenge. The City of Geneva is gradually developing a number of measures in this sphere. The initial emphasis was placed on the accessibility of buildings. Today, sensory impairments and mental handicaps benefit from appropriate measures implemented in collaboration with institutions and associations specialising in handicaps.

The Accessibility portal lists the locations and cultural events throughout Switzerland accessible to handicapped people, according to their handicap.

Sport

Numerous sports have now been adapted to meet the specific needs of people with reduced mobility. Most centres sportifs et stades de la Ville de Genève are accessible to people with reduced mobility.

In Geneva, two associations in particular encourage handicapped people to practise sports.

• Handisport Genève offers support to people with physical, sensory and/or mental handicaps in practising numerous sports including basketball, horse riding, water skiing, hiking and judo.

• The association sportive des schtroumpfs (ASS) offers mentally handicapped people the chance to enjoy the following sports: football, cycling, swimming and pétanque. The ASS also organises a number of competitions throughout the year.

Every year, the best players from around the world compete at the Swiss Wheelchair Tennis Open held at the Bois-des-frères sports centre.

Transport and amenities

Services exist to facilitate parking and the use of public transport for people with reduced mobility.

A number of specific amenities are also in place to help senior citizens, blind and visually impaired, people in wheelchairs and people with pushchairs or carrying bags to get around the city.

Financial aid and social services

In certain conditions, the City of Geneva grants financial benefits to people with disability insurance.

The City of Geneva provides people requiring medical monitoring or care with medicare housing (IAI).