ATscale, the Global Partnership for Assistive Technology is a cross-sectoral par...
ATscale, the Global Partnership for Assistive Technology is a cross-sectoral partnership with the goal of reaching 500 million additional people with assistive technology by 2030 to support them in participating in education, work, and everyday life. ATscale is hosted by UNOPS.
Today, over 1 billion people need at least one form of assistive technology (AT), such as wheelchairs, eyeglasses, or hearing aids, but over 900 million people (90%) do not have access to the assistive technology they require. The number of people who need assistive technology is expected to grow to more than 2 billion people by 2050.
Access to appropriate assistive technology enables persons with a loss of function, impairments, non-communicable diseases, and the aging population to participate in education, work, family, and community life. Lack of access to assistive technology has significant consequences for individuals, their families, and the wider society. Without assistive technology, individuals may experience isolation and exclusion from education, the labour market, and civic life. Lack of access to appropriate assistive technology causes poorer health outcomes including premature death, deteriorating mental health, and increased risk of chronic health conditions and secondary complications, all of which lead to a higher burden on health systems. Increasing accessibility and affordability of assistive technology unlocks unrealised economic potential and provides socioeconomic benefit for individuals, families, and countries by increasing productivity and participation in the workforce.
Launched at the Global Disability Summit in July 2018, ATscale was developed in response to the need for a new, catalytic approach to overcoming the significant gap in access to appropriate, high-quality, and affordable assistive technology globally. As a cross-sector partnership for assistive technology, ATscale aims to bring greater resources and strategic focus to this significant global challenge.
ATscale has defined a strategy overview (https://ATscale2030.org/strategy) in which it describes two strategic objectives: 1) to develop an enabling ecosystem for increased access to AT by galvanising political will, mobilising investment, driving policy reform, and strengthening targeted, cross-product systems, particularly at country level; and 2) to build and shape markets for priority products and their related services by identifying and investing in interventions to overcome specific supply and demand-side market barriers.
ATscale has also published an investment case for the sector (https://atscale2030.org/investment-case), as well as thorough market analyses and strategies, called Product Narratives, for improving access to its five priority products: wheelchairs, hearing aids, eyeglasses, prostheses, and digital assistive devices and software (https://atscale2030.org/product-narratives).