how is Lithuania managing to ensure digital accessibility?
Although by no means all of the country’s public sector websites are truly accessible, Simona Aginskaitė, the communication project manager of the Lithuanian Disability Organizations Forum (LNF), believes that we are on the right track.
What is the current situation?
Exactly six years ago, on October 26, it was adopted Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the accessibility of websites and mobile applications of public sector institutions.
This document obliges EU countries to ensure that the websites of state institutions are accessible to all people with disabilities by the fall of 2020. For mobile applications, this requirement is valid from the summer of 2021.
Interviewed by the Office of the Equal Opportunities Controller, S. Aginskaitė states that it is not known exactly how many Lithuanian websites comply with the directive. According to her, it would be worth looking at the Information Society Development Committee Analysis carried out in 2021.
This study showed that only 3 of the 131 public sector websites selected, using a simplified monitoring method (automatic tools), had deficiencies.
“Website administrators are notified of errors and given the opportunity to correct themselves. About 60 percent of those 128 errors were found. Claiming that they have fixed the bugs or are working on fixing them.
This is accepted as a reasonable answer. It must be understood that ensuring accessibility is a long process,” she says.
LNF does not carry out systematic testing, but all experts evaluate it quite positively. “The institutions themselves, such as “Sodra” or the State Tax Inspectorate, turn to organizations representing people with disabilities.
Institutions want their services to be available, it’s just that their platform, the volume of information they have to provide is very large, so the results are not completely satisfactory. This is normal, because it takes time, ensuring availability is not a simple task”, says S. Aginskaitė.
According to experts, the changes in public sector websites, compared to the situation that existed only after the adoption of the directive, are obvious. “The pages are visually much “cleaner” and understandable, the menu trees are clearer, the headings are separated by levels,” adds the LNF communications project manager.
She names good examples Employment services and Pages of Lithuanian Railways. “The latter used to be inconvenient, inaccessible – blind people had to buy tickets on their own, but now blind people are very happy with this site. You can even choose a place in the carriages in an affordable way”, S. Aginskaitė is happy.
Although the directive is not binding on businesses, private companies also understand the importance of access to digital information and services. According to experts, major e-tailers, bank self-service websites and food ordering platforms are extremely accessible.
If there may be any inconveniences, they are willingly removed, ways are sought to ensure services for all users and consumers.
True, there are also not such positive examples. One of them is the intercity transport sector. “The long distance service is often provided by private companies whose websites are not suitable.
For example, “Kautra”. The company’s programs are inaccessible, so blind people cannot buy tickets. It is easy to buy a public transport ticket in Vilnius, but to buy an intercity ticket, you have to ask for help from another person.
Long distance communication is an important and much needed public service, but if it is in private hands it can be difficult to influence the provider.
When public institutions purchase services from the private sector, they should include in the technical specifications the need to ensure the availability of digital information for suppliers. In this way, the directive would be applied in a wider scope”, suggests the LNF representative.
Where to start?
Ensuring the availability of websites is a process that requires all knowledge and expertise. It won’t necessarily be expensive, but it does take more time than “normal” website development.
“When we talk about accessibility, we always encourage you to have a strategy – a distinct priority, goals that will be a step-by-step goal for as long as ten years.”
It is useful to publish so-called availability notices on the pages. Such messages are information for users about what is available on the website, what is not yet, in which direction it is moving,” says the expert.
In the aforementioned directive, accessibility standards for websites are either mandatory or recommended. Must be associated with universal design principles.
These principles include when digital information is easily accessible and understandable to all: people with visual impairments, the elderly, the population that speaks other languages, etc. A website that has a separate page for users with disabilities cannot be considered universal (such exclusion is recommended to be avoided).
For those who want to create or update a website, S. Aginskaitė advises to first try to make all information available in more than one sense.
For example, if an image is provided, it must be described with alternative text, if an audio or video recording is posted, it must be accompanied by subtitles, etc.
Site structure and menus should be clear, information should be laid out using multi-level headings, users and users should be able to navigate pages using a keyboard or voice input (relevant for mobile versions).
The design must distort when changing the mobile phone screen must adjust other looks. More tips on how to create a versatile website can be found here In the memo prepared by LNF.
Another important stage of ensuring availability is testing. Information Society Development Committee provides tools, it is possible to check whether the website meets the accessibility requirements. By using automatic checking programs, it is possible to determine which error should be corrected.
This method is flexible, but should not be limited to it. “We keep saying that there are things that automated tools can’t pick up.” Private companies seeking the greatest possible convenience for their users will never rely solely on applications – its performance and experience studies.
We recommend contacting an organization for the blind and partially sighted. They can check how the site’s content has been used by visually impaired people. Sometimes the page theoretically meets accessibility requirements, but in reality it will be very inconvenient, it will be difficult to find the necessary information”, says the head of LNF communication projects.
Universality is not enough for a website to meet the needs of all people with disabilities. The directive also recommends considering alternative ways of presenting information.
Alternatives are the publication of information in sign (for the deaf and hard of hearing) and easy-to-understand (for people with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities) languages.
Organizations are suggested to think about which information is essential and take care of the translation of this information. The Lithuanian Society of the Deaf willingly cooperates with various institutions and can help to supplement the page with Lithuanian sign language records.
“Alternative formats are available for people with intellectual disabilities, such as presenting items in easy-to-understand text or images. When we get to another country’s airport and we don’t understand the local language, we still learn from the icons where to find our luggage, where the departure or arrival area is.
A similar adaptation of the website would help people, for example, with learning difficulties, to navigate the pages more easily”, says S. Aginskaitė.
Preparing a text in an easy-to-understand language requires specific knowledge, so it would be worthwhile to contact specialists, participate in training or otherwise improve your competence in this area.
Websites and mobile applications of Lithuanian institutions are not yet available. S. Aginskaitė calls it a success story of advocacy carried out by people with disabilities and their representatives.
“The government heard. It not only has the ambition to implement the mandatory points established in the directive. The proposal prepared together with disability organizations has already been submitted to the Seimas, the recommended alternative – to make the adaptation of information for people with intellectual or hearing disabilities mandatory”, concludes the expert.