Reporting to the Prime Minister, the Interministerial Delegation for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (DIJOP) employs some twenty people dedicated to organizing and building the Games' legacy. DIJOP coordinates the work of the various ministries involved, and collaborates with Paris 2024 (the 1901 association organizing the event), the French National Olympic Committee, the French Paralympic Sports Committee, as well as host communities such as the City of Paris and the Department of Seine-Saint-Denis. The delegation monitors each topic, orchestrates the timetable for implementation and works to develop measures that will remain as a legacy of the Olympic Games, such as in the field of disability and health, for which Alexandra Barrier is responsible as Disability and Health Advisor in addition to her role as DIJOP General Secretary.

1 What are your ambitions in terms of disability visibility during the Games?

The first Paralympic Games were held in 1960, and 84 years later, our ambition is not to reduce the issue of disability to the Paralympic dimension of the Games alone, but to ensure that it permeates the entire Olympic year. As the government has pledged, Paris 2024 must be a catalyst for lasting change, to ensure that people with disabilities are better integrated into society. To achieve this ambition, we need to address the issue of accessibility, a subject on which we are working closely with players in the transport sector, of course, but also with those in the tourism industry, the host communities to implement the necessary roadway adjustments and Paris 2024 to create a successful spectator experience that will leave a lasting mark on French society.

Active for many years in the disability sector, this is a subject close to my heart, and I was fortunate to find, in the person of the Interministerial Delegate for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Préfet Michel Cadot, an authority who is very committed to the issue. So, in March 2023, we set up a group of user-experts, made up of 15 people with all types of disability, in order to experiment with accessibility proposals for the venues, test routes, identify areas for improvement and propose modifications to transport accessibility for the Olympic Games. For example, we attended the French badminton championships at the new Arena La Chapelle. This event enabled us to measure the accessibility of the site and the roads in the configuration of the Games, to carry out transport tests including the shuttles set up by IDFM during the Olympic Games, to experiment with body searches and to notify the elements to be improved. Involving a group of experts in real-life conditions was a new method within the French government, which inevitably destabilized some players at first, but I believe that today, no one would imagine this type of event without fully involving them, which I believe is already a major legacy of the Games.

In September 2023, an inter-ministerial committee on disability was held, at which the Prime Minister and the operators signed a charter of commitment to ten measures to be implemented between now and the Olympic Games. These measures include improving the sound system in the metro, developing disability awareness training for cab and VTC drivers and, thanks to financial support from the French government, increasing the number of accessible cabs in the IDF by a factor of 4.

The ADP Group has also considerably improved its practices by raising awareness of disability issues throughout the airport community, setting up a disability advisory committee, creating 8 changing rooms at Orly and Roissy and adapting its infrastructures. Today, wheelchairs are placed in the hold at check-in; tomorrow, people in wheelchairs should be able to use their own wheelchairs right up to the aircraft gates. Finally, for the host cities, the French government has earmarked 100 million euros for the Territorial Accessibility Fund to enable them to make hotels, shops and services accessible. All accessible sites will be referenced on the collaborative platform (https://acceslibre.beta.gouv.fr/), enabling people with disabilities to prepare their outings or find suitable, welcoming accommodation.

In addition, the French government and Paris 2024 have committed to recruiting 3,000 disabled volunteers from among the 45,000 volunteers who will be taking part in the Olympic Games. When I took office, I took over this volunteer program and we worked with some twenty associations, such as APF France Handicap, l'Arche en France, Vivre et Devenir, Fondation des Amis de l'Atelier, GROUPE SOS and many others, to recruit the 3,000 volunteers. At the same time, all Paris 2024 volunteers and employees will be trained to welcome people with disabilities.

In conclusion, this strategy focuses on three major issues:
> Universal accessibility, from arrival in the region to the Olympic venue;
> The development of para-sport, with the aim of reaching the number of 4,000 inclusive clubs that are aware of and ready to support the practice of sport by people with disabilities; the reduction in the VAT rate for adapted sports equipment, and the tripling of the budget of the French National Sports Agency dedicated to financing the accessibility of sports facilities.
> The global visibility of disability thanks to 300 hours of rebroadcasting of Paralympic events, volunteer work by people with disabilities, the Paralympic Days organized in 2022 and 2023 and the exhibition to be held at the Pantheon on the history of the Paralympic Games.

2. How can we measure the impact of the Olympic and Paralympic Games?

The French government has launched 13 studies to assess the impact of the Games before, during and after. One of these studies will highlight the advances and uses made in terms of infrastructure accessibility thanks to the Olympic Games.
In conjunction with the French Department of Spatial Planning, we have decided to extend the study to include impacts in the transport sector, and to highlight changes in the way organizations take accessibility into account.
This impact study began this year and will combine documentary analysis, indicator monitoring and usage tests.

Measuring the impact of the Games objectively is a first, as we have no history of similar studies after other Games. This approach will involve the government, the main players and the general public.

3. With the launch of the Games just around the corner, how is the organization going?

We are all working hard to ensure that the Games take place in the best possible conditions and that the event is a success. Of course, I'm well aware that good organization can't prevent unforeseen circumstances.

In terms of accessibility, it's important to bear in mind that our infrastructures are old, and so we'll be working to the very last day to make up for some of the considerable backlog. A great deal of work is still underway, for example on RER line E and metro line 14.

In the healthcare sector, in which I am also heavily involved, we will have to take into account the existing tensions in the sector, in order to meet needs without destabilizing already fragile organizations. We are working with the Ministry of Health, ARS and AP-HP to prepare for the event as effectively as possible. This is a considerable task. We also want to promote health sports. To this end, the 30 minutes of daily physical activity program has been deployed in schools, and a large amount of funding will be committed this year to extend this measure to social and medico-social establishments catering for children with disabilities.

I'm aware of the reservations expressed in the press, and we're all sensitive to them, but I think it's also important to take stock of how far we've come. I believe in the legacy of the Games.

I'm convinced that the Olympic Games will also be a great popular celebration, a moment in time when the world will be watching France. Participating in sporting feats in emblematic venues such as volleyball at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, horse-riding at the Château de Versailles and fencing at the Grand Palais, will be unforgettable moments for Olympic and Paralympic spectators alike.

4. What links do you have with the SSE? Are disability associations involved in the organization of the Games?

As I come from the voluntary sector, I've been able to involve a number of disability associations in our work. They are involved at several levels: some are involved through users on the user expert group, others are involved in the volunteer program, and still others are involved in the allocation of popular tickets: 400,000 tickets, including 17,640 for people with disabilities. I also co-host a quarterly meeting with Paris 2024 to inform disabled people's associations about the latest news on the Games.

"I sincerely believe that the Games are a gas pedal in bringing accessibility to the forefront. We've never talked so much about accessibility in France.

 

"A lot is being done for people with disabilities and it would be a shame if they didn't come to this party."

5. What do you remember about the Groupe SOS culture?

I joined the SOS Group at the age of 25, and I've been lucky enough to work in a variety of positions, rapidly acquiring new responsibilities and discovering important areas of public policy, from extreme poverty to disability and housing. Through the SOS Group, I've been able to immerse myself in a whole ecosystem that includes national-scale managing organizations that play an essential role in implementing public-interest missions, as well as smaller players with considerable power to innovate. For example, I'm very attached to Bobos à la ferme, which develops inclusive gites and offers respite stays for caregivers and people with disabilities. The diversity of the associative sector is an asset for our society.

6. What motivated you to work in the SSE and disability sector?

I've always wanted to work for the common good. I'm a committed person and I quickly knew that the SSE was for me. I've been working in the field of disability for eight years now, both within associations and on behalf of DIJOP: I'm delighted with the small steps that have been taken to ensure that disability is better taken into account in our society, and I'm blossoming within a community of committed players. But I'm still very concerned about the legitimate dissatisfaction felt by people with disabilities and their families, which generates so much injustice. My desire, in the position I occupy, is to contribute to meeting this challenge of social justice. It's the driving force behind my commitment.

7. What's the next step on your career path?

As my mission is limited in time, I find myself at a crossroads where I'm hesitating between returning to the associative sector or continuing in favor of public action, on behalf of the State or another administration. What's certain is that I'll get involved wherever I feel useful, where I can help projects move forward and contribute to meeting the major challenges facing our society.

Alexandra Barrier joined the SOS Group in an executive position within the Ile de France regional delegation of the SOS Group, before being promoted to Deputy General Manager of the Habitat et Soins subsidiary, a position she held for just under 8 years. She continued her exceptional career within the Group as General Manager for Disability in 2016. After 16 years of loyal service to the Group headed by Jean-Marc Borello, in 2022 she was appointed Secretary General - Handidap and Health Advisor to the Interministerial Delegation for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games (DIJOP).