Accessibility of digital products for people with special needs
Today marks the day of disabled people of the Republic of Kazakhstan, established on June 15, 1993, by Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 1224. It is celebrated annually on the second Sunday of October in support of the UN initiative. The international day of persons with disabilities is celebrated on December 3, based on the UN General Assembly resolution adopted in 1992.
At the same time, these days it is important not only to pay attention to people with disabilities but also to assess the measures taken and determine the next steps towards eliminating their discrimination in society. We must promote their desire for self-realization and their desire to be an active and equal part of society in a real way.
On October 6, 2020, the Commissioner for human rights in the Republic of Kazakhstan, E. Аzimova, and members Of the coalition of human rights defenders of people with disabilities discussed issues that require close attention from government agencies and developers of relevant digital products within the framework of government orders and agreed on further cooperation.
The coalition is a new Republican organization and its tasks include protecting the rights of people with disabilities and participating in the promotion of initiatives and commitments adopted by Kazakhstan under the UN Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities. Our country has ratified the Convention based on the law of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated February 20, 2015.
Head of the Commission on the rights of people with disabilities named after K. Imanalieva Viniamin Aliyev and members of the coalition Ziyat Abdikarim and Musagali Dauylov raised issues of the digital divide for people with disabilities.
As the participants of the meeting emphasized, during the quarantine period, this problem has become particularly acute and has exposed a large layer of problems related to the lack of access of this group of citizens to electronic public services and financial products. The current laws of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On access to information" and "On public services" provide for equal rights of citizens to information and public services. But in practice, the lack of high-quality adapted access to information on the state portal egov causes great difficulties. The lack of an adapted alphabet of the Kazakh language, voice synthesis of information posted on state resources, and the ability to use an electronic digital signature to receive public services are just some examples of discrimination against people with vision and hearing problems.
The international community is actively discussing the issue of the technological gap and ensuring access to the Internet for all people, regardless of their characteristics and social status is widely discussed in the international community. Today, major technology corporations such as Microsoft, Apple, and Google have large-scale inclusive projects.
The International Telecommunication Union, a specialized division of the United Nations, has developed a set of recommendations for UN member states to ensure access to information and communication technologies for people with special needs. Creating such an environment is an important task of the state.
If digital services are initially designed with different use cases in mind, then the product, function, and option will be in demand, even if the person's physical capabilities and needs change over time.
Designing an adapted service at the initial stage will make it accessible not only for people with disabilities (blindness, deafness, motor disorders). It will be suitable for many people with different life scenarios. There are many more people with special needs than people with disabilities, and user scenarios are necessary for many people: left-handed people, the elderly, pregnant people, people after an injury, etc. inclusion of all citizens in society) – not only non - discriminatory access to objects: ramps, elevators, etc., it is access to digital products and coverage of all spheres of human life.
National center for human rights