Sita Gyawali, a teacher at Laboratory Secondary School in Kirtipur, is completely blind from birth. However, she can read and write. She does not need any support in her work.

She teaches confidently at school, uses a mobile phone, and uses digital materials. Self-reliant in everything, when she needs work at the bank, she starts looking for neighbors, friends, and relatives. Because she is forced to wear a lapel pin and fill out forms to withdraw money at the bank.

Stating that financial privacy is not ensured due to the compulsion to take money to others while doing money transactions, she said, ‘There is privacy in the amount in your account! How much money is there, how much will be withdrawn, you have to tell everyone else. This also lets others know about my transactions.’

She shared another bitter experience when she went to open an account at a bank three months ago. She requested the bank employees to provide SMS facility to know how much money is coming in and going out of the account. The employee turned her away, saying that the account might be misused and the money might be lost. She said that even though she said that she would be responsible if the bank account or money was misused, the employee did not agree.

After the verbal request was not accepted, she went back to the bank last Baisakh with a written application. She got the SMS facility only a month after submitting the application. Complaining that she did not even get the SMS facility on time at the bank, she said, ‘Every account holder has the right to know about their transactions.’

Although the provision to make the mobile app and digital banking system usable is positive, the directive cannot be implemented unless there is a clear provision on punishment. - Gajendra Budhathoki , Disability rights activist and journalist Although it is natural for the bank to impose a lock saying that they cannot sign from opening an account to making transactions, she says that today's blind people should be able to do mobile banking, SMS facilities and transactions themselves since they are educated and familiar with technology. She said that she is capable of doing banking transactions after completing her postgraduate studies, saying, ‘Today's blind people can do their own work. They should also be able to do bank work themselves.’ You should not have to look for or tell others to withdraw and spend your earned money.'

Prajwal Subedi, who has a hearing disability, has the same experience. He said that when he reached the bank due to mobile banking being 'locked', there was a problem in communication. He complained that there was no visual indication, signboard or screen to indicate which branch to go to. He tried to explain the problem to the employee, but the employee did not understand. The employee understood his problem only after showing the photo on the phone. He narrated his experience through a WhatsApp message, saying, 'It took a long time to explain to the employee that my mobile app was broken, there is no one who understands our language.'

He said that he faced the same problem even when he went to make a check. He works in the Finance Department of the National Federation of the Deaf and runs e-services, wallets, and PhonePe. He is a graduate student and emails the bank when he has a problem, but he does not get a response in time. The bank calls but he cannot speak. Therefore, he has to take help from family and friends.

He believes that it would be easier if banks provided services through SMS and email for the hearing impaired. He said, ‘The bank would have made it easier for us through email and SMS. So that we can talk to the bank directly about loans, interest, fixed deposits and other banking services without the help of others. If there were options like sign language interpreters, we would not have to depend on others.’

Nepal Rastra Bank has recently amended the ‘Unified Directive, 2082’ and issued instructions to banks and financial institutions licensed under the Simple Banking Regulation to expand senior citizen and disability-friendly services. According to the directive, banks will have to make special arrangements to provide banking services to the visually impaired, disabled and senior citizen service recipients. Banks and financial institutions should make at least one branch in each local level disability-friendly and arrange ATM booths with ramps, Braille signs, control buttons and audio support in such branches.

Although the National Bank has been issuing directives in the past to operate senior citizen and disability-friendly financial services, the recently revised directive has made a new provision to have Braille signs, control buttons and audio support to provide banking access to the visually impaired.

According to the National Census 2078, the population of people with disabilities is 2.2 percent. Even though banking services are expanding, most of the bank buildings, ATM booths, digital services and service delivery systems have not yet become disability-friendly. The visually impaired, hearing impaired and wheelchair-users have been complaining of facing various obstacles in accessing banking services. Rights activists have been saying that despite issuing directives repeatedly before, they have not been implemented.

Disability rights activist and media personality Gajendra Budhathoki said that the latest directive of the National Bank is a continuation of the old system rather than a new issue. He said that in the past, the visually impaired did not have access to banking and the current revised system targets the visually impaired as well. He informed that since Kartik 2070, instructions have been given to provide simple banking facilities by giving special priority to senior citizens and physically disabled people (differently abled).

Although it is not possible to immediately give instructions to make it completely disability-friendly, instructions have been given to make one branch and one ATM booth of a bank in an area disability-friendly. – Guru Prasad Poudel , spokesperson, Nepal Rastra Bank informed that the first disabled-friendly counter was operated at Sunrise Bank's main office in Naxal in 2074 BS as per the directive, but it is currently unused. He said that he has been sending KYC forms for all transactions through mobile banking through mail lately. ‘Even if I have to go to the bank, I can't go, it's on three floors, wheelchairs can't go, how can I go and work?’ Budhathoki said, ‘Although the provision to make the mobile app and digital banking system usable is positive, the directive cannot be implemented unless there is a clear provision stating what kind of punishment will be imposed if it is not implemented.’ Even though the law and directive say ‘it must be done’, Budhathoki says that the implementation is not effective because there is no clear mention of what kind of punishment will be imposed if it is not done. ‘Just as banks are punished for not investing in the Poor Sector Loan Directive, there should be a provision for action even if they do not implement disability-friendly services, and only then will such a directive be implemented,’ he said, ‘Banks have not shown interest in building disability-friendly structures by using the excuse that the building is rented. Accessible counters should be built in banks in coordination with the local level. There is a separate counter for collecting taxes in the Land Revenue and Transport Office, and similarly, disability-friendly counters should also be mandatory.’

Nepal Rastra Bank spokesperson Guru Prasad Poudel claimed that the policy is being worked on to expand simple and accessible banking services for people with disabilities. According to him, in the past, since financial access was limited, it was not possible to force banks to build disability-friendly infrastructure. He said, ‘Earlier, it was a challenge to open an ATM and a branch, but now many local levels have two or more bank branches, so the directive has been issued with the aim of making it accessible.’

Santosh Koirala , President, Nepal Bankers Association Poudel said that there is no immediate situation to issue instructions to make banks disability-friendly, and informed that at least one branch and one ATM of the banks in some areas have been instructed to make them disability-friendly. According to him, since it is difficult to change the structure by demolishing old buildings, disability-friendly structures have been included in newly constructed buildings and efforts are being made to expand access to banking technology. It may not be possible to implement all services immediately, but banks are trying to address it gradually, and construction and improvement work is underway. –

Poudel said that a study is needed on how necessary the use of technology is, how much the target group can use it, and how reasonable the cost is. ‘We need to look at the demand, how capable the target group is, and what the cost will be. We are preparing to move forward on this issue based on studies, consultations with banks and related bodies, and necessary opinions,’ he said.

Nepal Bankers Association President Santosh Koirala said that banks are gradually expanding disability-friendly services. According to him, such services have already been launched in some banks, while construction and improvement work is underway in some. He said that special attention has been paid to creating a structure where wheelchair users can easily reach ATMs while constructing new buildings. ‘Banks have been providing disability-friendly services, and in new buildings, arrangements have been made to keep teller counters on the ground floor so that they can receive services from wheelchairs,’ he said.