Environment and Sustainability > Sustainability

SAHEL Accessibility Rating System Consultancy

AESG provides specialist consultancy services to support the implementation of the SAHEL Rating System across new developments and existing assets in Abu Dhabi. Our qualified SAHEL professionals combine accessibility expertise with extensive experience in multidisciplinary design integration, regulatory compliance, sustainability certification, construction monitoring, and operational performance.

Introduced by Abu Dhabi’s Department of Municipalities and Transport, SAHEL establishes a consistent framework for creating environments that are accessible, inclusive, adaptable, and easy to navigate. The system addresses the needs of people of determination, senior citizens, parents with young children, and individuals with temporary or permanent accessibility requirements. It applies across three principal categories—Communities, Public Realm, and Buildings—with projects assessed against four performance levels: Accessible, Adaptable, Inclusive, and Exemplar.

Why It Matters

Globally, an estimated 1 in 6 people live with some form of disability – a figure that grows further once senior citizens, parents with young children, and people with temporary mobility needs are considered. Designing for accessibility means designing for the majority of end users at some point in their lives, not a narrow segment of them.

As SAHEL becomes an established reference point for accessibility performance in Abu Dhabi, projects that embed it from the outset gain a measurable advantage: fewer late-stage redesigns, stronger asset resale and leasing appeal, and a stronger position when engaging institutional and government occupiers who increasingly expect inclusive-design credentials as standard.

Our Approach

Our approach embeds accessibility requirements into the project from the earliest stages rather than treating compliance as a retrospective assessment. Through structured design coordination, progressive compliance reviews, site verification, and evidence management, AESG helps project teams identify risks early, minimise redesign, control cost impacts, and deliver practical accessibility outcomes that remain effective throughout the asset’s operation.

By integrating SAHEL consultancy with AESG’s wider expertise in sustainability, building performance, mobility, human-centric design, commissioning, digital modelling, and asset operations, we provide clients with a coordinated and efficient pathway toward inclusive, compliant, and high-performing developments across Abu Dhabi.

Our Services

AESG supports clients, developers, designers, contractors, and asset operators throughout the complete project lifecycle, from early planning and design through construction, handover, and operation. Our services include:

SAHEL applicability assessment and target-rating definition
Project coordination with the relevant authorities
Baseline reviews, gap assessments, and development of project-specific compliance strategies
Translation of SAHEL requirements into clear architectural, interior design, landscape, public realm, mobility, wayfinding, and operational requirements
Accessibility workshops with client and multidisciplinary design teams
Detailed design reviews, compliance trackers, action registers, and technical recommendations

Integration of accessibility requirements into specifications, drawings, schedules, employer’s requirements, and tender documentation
Review of accessible routes, entrances, vertical circulation, sanitary facilities, parking, drop-off areas, signage, wayfinding, emergency provisions, and user interfaces
Construction-stage inspections and verification of installed accessibility measures
Review and compilation of supporting evidence, testing records, as-built information, and closeout documentation
Support during authority reviews, assessments, audits, and final rating submissions
Operational accessibility reviews and recommendations for existing buildings and public spaces

Rouba Nassar

Senior Sustainability Consultant, AESG

Zein Al-Doughmi

Sustainability Consultant, AESG

Get in Touch

Planning a development in Abu Dhabi? Speak to our SAHEL consultancy team today.

SAHEL Accessibility Rating System Consultancy

Why It Matters

Our Approach

Our Services

AESG supports clients, developers, designers, contractors, and asset operators throughout the complete project lifecycle, from early planning and design through construction, handover, and operation. Our services include:

Our AESG Qualified SAHEL Professionals

Rouba Nassar

Zein Al-Doughmi

Get in Touch

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