In this report, ATscale describes the enormous gains that access to assistive technology (AT) can have in health, for the community and the economy. The figures are dramatic: investment in the provision of four assistive products - hearing aids, prostheses, eyeglasses, and wheelchairs - will result in a return on investment of 9:1.

Having access to AT can make the difference between failure or success in school, between a job or unemployment, between a life of opportunity or a life of dependency. An example: for a child in a low- or middle-income country, access to AT can later make a difference of US$100,000 in lifetime income.

Altogether, providing AT to all who need it would yield more than US$10 trillion in economic benefits over the next 55 years.

Investing in AT both has a transformative impact on people’s wellbeing and makes sound economic sense for funders and governments. It is both the right thing and the smart thing to do.

Providing AT to all who need it would add over one billion additional years of ‘perfect health’ (quality-adjusted life years or QALYs) for those in need today.

The report is available to download in the following accessible versions in English: DAISY | EPUB | HTML

It is also available in PDF format in the following languages: Spanish | French | Russian

Yet, the world so far has failed to meet the global need for AT. Nearly one billion people living in low- and middle-income countries require one or more of the four devices covered in this investment case: hearing aids, prostheses, eyeglasses, and wheelchairs. But only 10% have access to the AT they need.

With this report, ATscale, the Global Partnership for Assistive Technology, aims to inspire action by stakeholders around the world to increase access to assistive technology.

Infographics from the report are also available as jpg-files: you can download them by clicking here.

Banner photo: UNICEF