2014-11-03
Use of the euro coin and banknote measuring device has been demonstrated to visually impaired people
Representatives of the Bank of Lithuania presented the practical aspects of the euro adoption and the future currency, and demonstrated the instruments that help differentiate the currency to the employees of the Lithuanian Association for the Blind and Partially Sighted, training centres for the blind, and social workers working with the blind.
“Having drawn attention to the difficulties arising for each group of visually impaired people (colour-blind, partially sighted, blind) in recognising currency, we emphasised the currency value features: for the blind they are more important than security features, because they help establishing the value of a currency unit, i.e. its purchasing power,” said Aurelija Meškerevičiūtė, chief specialist of the Public Relations Division of the Communications Department at the Bank of Lithuania. She taught the seminar participants how to measure banknotes and coins with a special measuring device. Currency denominations and value can be established from banknote length and width and coin marks.
The Bank of Lithuania has signed an agreement with the Austrian company CareTec International GmbH on the production of 3 thousand euro coin and banknote measuring devices. They are to be delivered in December and distributed to completely blind people in cooperation with the Lithuanian Association for the Blind and Partially Blinded.
In addition, sound cards, telling about the introduction of the new currency and briefly introducing to the euro banknotes and coins, will be distributed to the blind in December. 4 thousand “talking cards” with information on the euros have been produced and will be distributed.