Transcript What is Accessible ICT? - Philippine Web Accessibility Group

What is web
accessibility?
By Jojo I. Esposa Jr.
Manila Christian Computer
Institute for the Deaf (MCCID) &
Philippine Web Accessibility Group (PWAG)
Good day Web Designers! 
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JOJO I. ESPOSA JR.
Teacher for the Deaf (MCCID)
Sign Language Interpreter
ICT Enthusiast
Web Designer/Developer (www.pwag.org)
Blogger (deafphilippines.wordpress.com)
Facebook Addict
(www.facebook.com/jojoesposajr)
Advocate of “Information for ALL”
What is ICT?
ICT stands for Information and
Communications Technology
 Wikipedia defined it as a broad subject
concerned with technology and other
aspects of managing and processing
information
 In other words, it means technology used
to get the information needed
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What is an Accessible ICT?
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Getting information without barrier
Communicate information easier
Promotes full and equal participation of
everyone in social, economic and cultural life
and in their exercise of civil and political rights
Provides the flexibility to accommodate the
needs and preferences of the widest range of
users
In other words “information for all”
How do people get information
through the use of technology?
Through media (TV, radio and print)
 Through telecommunications (telephones,
cell phones, fax, etc.)
 Through Computers and the Internet
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Consider these latest facts
about the Philippines:
4 million telephones installed (2008)
 78 million cell phone users in 2010 (Rank
#14 worldwide and #6 in Asia beating
Thailand and Malaysia). That’s 8 out of 10
persons have cell phone. (Wikipedia)
 Average of 600 text messages/month per
mobile user in 2010, more than the annual
average SMS volume of countries in
Europe, US and even China. (Mashable)
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Facts continued:
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30 million Internet users by 2010 or 30% of population
(Internet World Stats)
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283,607 Internet Webhosts We are ranked #55
worldwide. (Wikipedia)
9 million Urban households own TV sets (AGB
Nielsen)
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In January 22, 2006, ABS-CBN's broadcast of "Hataw
Pacquiao, Laban ng Bayan" registered the biggest
number of viewers of a TV event in Philippine history
as AGB Nielsen Media Research showed that 2.073
million households (5.261 million individuals) watched
the Pacquiao-Morales rematch (AGB Nielsen)
How did ICT change the lives of
Filipinos?
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4 million people use their cell phones as virtual wallets to
buy things or transfer cash -- services still rare in many
wealthy countries (CNN Article)
Text messaging played a vital role in the ouster from
office of most popular Philippine President in 2001
(PDInquirer)
89% of people surveyed believe that TV is the most
trusted source of news and information (Pulse Asia)
Sen. Villar’s uber-popular “Dagat ng Basura” TV ads did
not do well in the polls. It was a probable case of overexposure.
How do we categorize people who
are deprived of information?
 People
with no access to
information
 People with limited access to
information
 People with wrong access to
information
How are those people deprived of
information?
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Those not yet reached by TV and cellular phone
signals;
Those using slow or old computer models, lower
screen resolutions and no Flash programs;
Those who have limited use of PC (Latest DepEd
data shows ratio of computers to elementary
students is one computer per 25,000 students
while in high school, it is one per 728 students.);
(PD Inquirer)
Those with no Internet or slow Internet (56kbps)
connection;
Those whose first language is NOT English;
What about those with disabilities?
Disability shall mean; (1) physical or mental
impairment that substantially limits one or
more psychological or anatomical
functions of an individual; (2) a records of
such an impairment or; (3) being regarded
as having such an impairment
(Magna Carta for Disabled Persons RA
7277)
What about those with disabilities?
Article 1 states that “persons with
disabilities include those who have longterm physical, mental, intellectual or
sensory impairments which in interaction
with various barriers may hinder their full
and effective participation in society on an
equal basis with others”.
(UN Convention on the Rights of Persons
with Disabilities)
What are the access barriers of
Persons With Disabilities on the
Internet?
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Deaf persons cannot hear important news
announcements on TV without closed captions
and audio outputs on the Internet. [Example1, 2]
Blind users cannot read Internet pages without
a special program called screen readers, they
also cannot read printed forms.
Poor eyesight users need to control the size of
texts.
Color blind users cannot distinguish red from
green, and blue from yellow.
What are the access barriers of
PWDs on the Internet?
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Mobility impaired users cannot control their
hands, thus cannot use the mouse. [Example]
Dyslexic/dyscalculic users have difficulty
grasping information and easily confused;
[Example]
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Epileptic users need to avoid seeing flickering or
flashing objects; [Example]
Senior citizen users acquire disabilities as they
progress their age and may be deprived of the
same situation as others.
What’s in it for me?
How many disabled people reads
websites?
 How many senior citizens read websites?
 Am I liable, or can I be jailed or penalized
if I don’t make my site accessible?
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How many are PWDs in the
Philippines?
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942,098 PWD as per 2000 census (very old data)
UN Fast Facts about PWDs
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Around 10% of the world's population, or 650 million
people, live with a disability. They are the world's largest
minority.
This figure is increasing through population growth,
medical advances and the ageing process, says the
World Health Organization (WHO).
In countries with life expectancies over 70 years,
individuals spend on average about 8 years, or 11.5% of
their life span, living with disabilities.
80% of persons with disabilities live in developing
countries (incl. Philippines)
UN Fast Facts about PWDs
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Disability rates are significantly higher among groups
with lower educational attainment in the countries. On
average, 19% of less educated people have disabilities,
compared to 11% among the better educated.
Women report higher incidents of disability than men.
20% of the world's poorest people have some kind of
disability, and tend to be regarded in their own
communities as the most disadvantaged.
Women with disabilities are recognized to be multiple
disadvantaged, experiencing exclusion on account of
their gender and their disability.
UN Fast Facts about PWDs
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Women and girls with disabilities are particularly
vulnerable to abuse. A small 2004 survey in Orissa,
India, found that virtually all of the women and girls with
disabilities were beaten at home, 25% of women with
intellectual disabilities had been raped and 6 %
of women with disabilities had been forcibly sterilized.
30% of street youths have some kind of disability.
Mortality for children with disabilities may be as high as
80 per cent in countries where under-five mortality as a
whole has decreased below 20%cases. It seems as if
children are being "weeded out".
Only 45 countries have anti-discrimination and other
disability-specific laws.
“Magna Carta for the Disabled Persons”
(RA 7277) – March 24, 1992
Section 4: Definition of Terms
(a) It defines Disabled Persons as those suffering from
restriction, as a result of a mental, physical or
sensory impairment, to perform an activity in the
manner or within the range considered normal for a
human being;
(p) It also defines commerce as… communication
among the provinces or between any foreign country
or any territory or possession
“Magna Carta for the Disabled Persons”
(RA 7277) – March 24, 1992
TITLE THREE - PROHIBITION ON DISCRIMINATION
AGAINST DISABLED PERSONS
SECTION 36: Discrimination on the Use of Public
Accommodations. – (a) No disabled persons shall be
discriminated on the basis of disability in the full and
equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities,
privileges, advantages or accommodations…
(2) A failure to make reasonable modifications in
policies, practices, or procedures, when such
modifications are necessary to afford such goods,
services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or
accommodations to individuals with disabilities...
“Magna Carta for the Disabled Persons”
(RA 7277)
Although it is not deliberately stated, using the Internet
and accessing information from it can also be
interpreted as a public service and falls under the
assistive technologies. Since the World Wide Web is
designed to be accessed by everyone (public
accommodation), preventing others to use it by
putting barriers can be a cause for discrimination.
Penalty?
1st violation = P50T – P100T fine or
6 months – 2 years imprisonment
UN Convention on the Rights of Persons
With Disabilities (UNCRPD)
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Fastest Treaty ever deliberated and adopted into law by
the United Nations (4 years)
It follows the Biwako Millennium Regional Framework for
Action Towards an Inclusive, Barrier-free and RightsBased Society for PWDs in Asia and the Pacific (2002)
Adopted into law by UN General Assembly on December
13,2006
Philippines is 27th country that signed (9-25-2007) and
ratified it (4-15-2008)
As of 2010, 146 countries already signed with only 20
countries needed to have it adopted to all UN member
countries.
Philippines contributed significantly on Article 9
(Accessibility Provision)
UN CRPD Significance
Article 9 – Accessibility
To enable persons with disabilities to live
independently and participate fully in all aspects of
life, States Parties shall…
(g) Promote access for persons with disabilities to new
information and communications technologies and
systems, including the Internet;
(h) Promote the design, development, production and
distribution of accessible information and
communications technologies and systems at an
early stage, so that these technologies and systems
become accessible at minimum cost.
Philippine Web Accessibility Group (PWAG)
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Formed in 2006 out of series of regional workshops
which started in 2003.
Registered under SEC in 2007.
Tasked to implement Manila ICT Design
Recommendations and added Web Design
Accessibility Recommendations (Maturity Stages)
In tripartite with National Council on Disability Affairs
(NCDA) and National Computer Center (NCC-CICT) in
drafting an Executive Order from Philippine President
to evaluate, monitor and assist web accessibility
compliance of all government websites in accordance
with UNCRPD law
Promote web accessibility in private websites.
What is accessibility?
Providing flexibility to accommodate
the user’s needs and preferences
 Flexibility
– reasonable
 Needs and preferences
 Accommodation
What is web accessibility?
“Web Accessibility” simply means
making your web site accessible to
anyone using the Internet.
It also means the practice of making
websites accessible by people of
all abilities and disabilities.
What are accessible web sites?
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Designed to work with different devices and
browsers like:
 Popular
browsers like FireFox, Internet Explorer,
Google Chrome and Apple Safari
 Text-only browsers like Lynx
 Assistive devices like Braille machines
 Text-to-Speech browsers like pwWebSpeak
 Screen Readers like Jaws, NVDA
 Portable devices (laptops, netbooks, PDA, iPad and
tablet PCs)
 Cell phones (iPhone, smart phones, touch screens)
How do we benefit from making
accessible web sites?
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It reduces web site maintenance costs.
It can be easily converted to conform
with other devices.
Your web site will be faster and more
comfortable to use.
It will be compatible with any standards.
What are the business benefits of
accessible web sites?
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Your web site will appear higher in
Google, Bing and Yahoo search.
Disabled people have spending powers,
thus increased market.
Your web site can meet international
legal requirements.
You will gain good publicity.
Can accessible ICT generate jobs
for PWDs?
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Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities
ICT improves productivity
ICT is an industry
ICT is an enabler for Persons with
Disabilities
What career opportunities can ICT
give to PWDs?
Graphics animation
 Call center operation
 Medical Transcriptions
 Data Entry Operations
 Computer Operations
 Computer repairs/servicing
 Software development
 Web page development
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Quotable Quotes
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“But seriously folks, good relationships are built on
good communication. There's no reason you should
struggle to reach the ones you love.” - David Murray,
Google product manager said after announcing the free
use of Gmail this February 14.
“The power of the Web is in its universality. Access
by everyone regardless of disability is an essential
aspect.” -Tim Berners-Lee
“I wish you and all our advocates the will and the
resolve to find ways to equalize opportunities for
persons with disabilities.” - Sir Leo Valdes message of
encouragement to PWAG core group members
“Web Accessibility is not only
for people with disabilities
but for all of us
who are thankful
that there are no barriers
in using our abilities.”
Maraming salamat po!