ICT for People with Disabilities

Tin Sokhavuth

An Internet radio (Voice of People with Disabilities) monitored by people with disabilities at CDPO. (Photo: supplied)

Ngin Saorath, executive director of the Cambodian Disabled People’s Organization (CDPO), told Khmer Times, on Sunday, in responding to the United Nations conference on the rights of people with disabilities last week, that in the era of the information technology, the advances of technology have brought challenges and opportunities for people with disabilities in society as well as in development.

He added that the measures taken by his NGO to ensure the accessibility to information and communications technologies (ICTs) for persons with disabilities was to urge the government to include sign language on TV channels. His NGO is also looking at best practices in this matter from Laos and Thailand in order to present those experiences to the Ministry of Information.

“However, I think that the opportunities for people with disabilities to access communication and information technology are still limited – only people with disabilities living in urban area could have access to the ICTs, while people living in rural area not,” said Mr. Saorath.

In responding to the question raised by UN that to what extend the UN’s approach and concept have been incorporated in the national policies and development program, Mr. Saorath said that there was not much policies and/or development program regarding the access to ICTs in Cambodia as well as in the ASEAN community. For this reason, Mr. Saorath asked the state parties to implement the Convention on the Rights of Persons with disabilities (CRPD).

Mr. Saorath also said the good example for such access to ICTs that the government and private sector could look at was the software made by Apple and Android companies for blind and deaf people.

As for the innovative approaches of the public-private partnerships, Mr. Saorath said that this partnership plays crucial role in the inclusion project. However, they need to understand disabilities’ need and challenges. They need to work along with disabilities NGOs.

“They need to adapt the environment of their work to welcome disabilities employers and employees in term of access to ICTs. They also need to design a clear action plan on how they could involve and support the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” added Mr. Saorath.

Last week, the 9th session of the conference of the state parties of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPC) took place at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York City, USA, from June 14 to June 16.

Neth Un, deputy general secretary of the Disability Action Council (DAC), told Khmer Times that there were 130 countries around the world participating in the conference. As for the Cambodian delegation, it was Sem Sokha, president of the Disability Action Council, who was the representative of the delegation.

According Mr. Un, the theme of the conference was “Implementing the 2030 development agenda for all persons with disabilities: Leaving no one behind”, and the Sub-themes were “Eliminating poverty and inequality for all persons with disabilities, Promoting the rights of persons with mental and intellectual disabilities, Enhancing accessibility to information and technology and inclusive development, Celebrating the 10th anniversary of the adoption of the CRPD.”

He added that the Kingdom of Cambodia has been ratifying the CRPD on December 20, 2012. The ratification was into effect on January 19, 2013.

In its document about the “enhancing the accessibility of information and technology and inclusive development”, the UN sated that the term “accessibility” describes the environment, services or product allowing access to many people as possible, including persons with disabilities.

The UN added that barrier for access to ICT for people with disabilities was a major problem for them to enjoy their human rights and their participation in society as well in development. It causes inequality between persons with disabilities and normal people.

“All too often, for the world’s 1 billion persons worldwide living with disability, the widespread barriers or lack of accessibility in the environments related to information and communications and relevant technologies and services have been a major challenge for the enjoyment of universal human rights and for full participation in society and development on an equal basis with others,” stated the UN.

Nevertheless, the CRPD requires state parties to create physical and virtual environment in favor of persons with disabilities in order to make them live independently and fully participate in all aspects of society and development, including ICTs.

In the outcome, the UN requires state parties to help people with disabilities to have equal access to the physical environment, transportation, employment, education, health, services, information, and ICTs in the urban area as well as in the rural area.

In the field of implementation, the UN asked governments that are state parties “to recognize accessibility as essential to all process of sustainable, equitable and inclusive development and of ICT development policy and programs; to support the development of accessible ICTs, including mobile applications, government websites, public kiosks and automated teller machines.”