ISSUE-34: add more accessibility context to intro and OGD

acessibility-intro-OGD

add more accessibility context to intro and OGD

State:

CLOSED

Product:

Group Note 1 -- General

Raised by:

José Manuel Alonso

Opened on:

2009-04-29

Description:

from comments by Judy Brewer

Given the stated goals of the eGov IG to inform the usage of Web standards for more effective use of the Web by governments, the importance of ensuring openness and transparency of government data, the fact that accessibility barriers often hinder access for hundreds of millions of people worldwide who have disabilities, and the already widespread use of W3C/WAI guidelines in many countries to help ensure accessibility of government Web sites, it seems appropriate to include a more explicit reference to accessibility at the TOC level of this document.

My suggestion would be to include this reference under "The W3C eGovernment Interest Group (eGov IG) seeks and aspires to become a critical link in assisting governments with the promise of electronic government" in place of, or in addition to, the current "Inclusive Access to Information" which appears to refer to a more diverse set of issues, including as people not yet online. This refocused or additional section could be titled "Accessibility for People with Disabilities."

The contents of the new section could include some of the material suggested under 3.1 of the EOWG comments, but to maintain consistency with the rest of the document, I suggest that it also make reference to the broader policy context driving adoption of accessibility guidelines in many countries, and that it also reference one of the most pressing issues in adoption of accessibility standards, which is the important of standards harmonization. These two issues could be addressed with language along the following lines:

"Given that people with disabilities represent between ten and twenty percent of the population of most countries, ensuring accessibility of government Web sites is an important aspect of openness and transparency of government data. This need has been made more explicit by the 2008 passage of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which among other fundamental human rights includes the right of access to information."

It would need a parallel subsection under "How Can Open Government Data Be Achieved?" which could be entitled "Ensuring Accessibility" and which could state:

"The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, from W3C's Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) provide an effective solution for ensuring accessibility of government Web content and applications. Harmonization with W3C's international standards for Web accessibility has emerged as an important issue, since fragmentation into divergent standards slows the development of supporting authoring and evaluation tools."

Related Actions Items:

No related actions

Related emails:

1. [minutes] eGov IG call, 6 May 2009 (from josema@w3.org on 2009-05-06)
2. Re: Comments on Working Draft of 'Improving Access to Government...' (from josema@w3.org on 2009-05-01)
3. Re: Comments on Working Draft of 'Improving Access to Government...' (from josema@w3.org on 2009-04-29)
4. ISSUE-34 (acessibility-intro-OGD): add more accessibility context to intro and OGD [Group Note 1 -- General] (from sysbot+tracker@w3.org on 2009-04-29)

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