In 2018, UNDP in Kyrgyzstan conducted a study to identify negative stereotypes against women and men with disabilities. The results of this study showed that most people in Kyrgyzstan perceive people with disabilities as dependent and in need of constant care—people who should be pitied. As a result, society considers them inferior persons, which is one of the main obstacles to their inclusion in society. One of the significant resources influencing the formation of an understanding of disability in society is the media.

To change these negative stereotypes, UNDP initiated the development of the Disability in Media Guidelines in 2023, which aim to provide guidance on disability representation in the media.

A team of individuals with diverse disabilities was assembled to collaborate on this document, under the direction of a well-known disability blogger in Kyrgyzstan, Oscar Rice (actual name: Askar Turdugulov). Oscar is a disability rights activist, public advisor to the Ombudsman, and founder of the New Age public association, promoting and protecting the rights of people with disabilities.

On social networks, Oscar shares the problems that people with disabilities face in the fields of access to the environment and employment. At the same time, he shares with subscribers his impressions of travel and interesting events taking place in Kyrgyzstan. For the disability community, he is a role model; he expands their understanding of the possibilities of an active life for a person using a wheelchair.

Oscar contributed his many years of experience covering disability on social media, along with other colleagues with disabilities, to the development of this brochure. Thus, the guidelines present the basic principles of disability representation in media that should be followed when creating media materials about disability. Among them: Nothing about us without us!; inclusion of diversity of disability subcultures; creation of an authentic portrayal of people with disabilities; elimination of negative stereotypes and attitudes; using correct language towards people with disabilities. To implement the principle of correct and respective language in the disability area, the UNDP team and this working group created a glossary of disability-inclusive terms, which the Kyrgyz Republic's Ministry of Labor, Social Welfare, and Migration approved.

The next step was to distribute the developed materials. Oscar was very enthusiastic about providing training to journalists in the north and south of the country, presenting the application of principles of disability representation based on his experience as well as successful examples from international practice. The training participants noted that, for them, this training was an opportunity to rethink disability. Journalists participating in the trainings say: