Disabled people and ICT: Top tips for Government

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Disabled people and ICT: Top tips for Government

The leaflet "Top tips for Government" gives a list of recommendations on their role in implementing the eInclusion Charter. This is what it says:

  1. Aspire to the highest accessibility standards for eGovernment services: Local and national government can influence the rest of society significantly by setting an example. eGovernment service should strive to be fully accessible and usable. This applies to both public services as well as internal intranets.
  2. Use government procurement to pursue inclusion: As the US experience with Section 508 shows, procurement policies that require suppliers to meet minimal standards of accessibility can make a real difference in the market place. No government organisation should purchase services and products that do not meet basic standards.
  3. Make inclusion an underlying, integrated theme across policy domains: Inclusion should be a horizontal theme cutting across departmental boundaries. It is not just a domain for one government department. All aspects of policy development and government should be informed and driven by a strategic inclusion objective.
  4. Create a funding framework to cover specialised needs: Some very specific needs for small user groups (e.g. deafblind people, BSL users) cannot be met by free market mechanisms. Governments should accept that reality and see to it that suitable funding frameworks are being developed so that these individuals are not further disenfranchised by lack of access to suitable supporting technology and services.
  5. Develop policies to make education and employment fully accessible: Having access to proper education is vital for any citizen who wants to develop their full potential. It is also critical for access to the job market. Disabled people and their employers should not be disadvantaged because of the extra costs associated with meeting special needs. Governments must prioritise full, equivalent access to all levels of education and to the job market.
  6. Engage with all stakeholders: Working with disabled and older people and their representative organisations, as well as with business and industry, is essential to defining the right policies, finding the real barriers and bringing about real change. Dialogue and partnership are the key to effective policies.
  7. Legislate where necessary: In general, governments should not hamper free markets. But they must be willing to create legislation and regulation where needed to achieve full equality.

You can download the pdf version (48KB) of the leaflet.