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Public procurement & accessibility

Public procurement & accessibility . Gunela Astbrink Australian IGF ambassador. What is public procurement?. Government purchasing processes Government is large purchaser of goods and services including information and communication technology (ICT) such as: Phones Computers

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Public procurement & accessibility

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  1. Public procurement & accessibility Gunela Astbrink Australian IGF ambassador

  2. What is public procurement? Government purchasing processes • Government is large purchaser of goods and services including information and communication technology (ICT) such as: • Phones • Computers • Public service terminals • A range of software applications

  3. Accessibility criteria in public procurement can: • Provide more streamlined IT provision for persons with disability in the government workplace • Have flow-on effects for greater availability and affordability of accessible ICT in the general community Government can influence market by setting purchasing criteria including accessibility

  4. Examples of accessibility criteria • Ability to use display for a person without sight • Ability to use interface for a person without hearing • Ability to use interface for a person with physical limitations • Enabling seamless use of assistive technologies with common computer programs • Preventing common computer programs from rendering inbuilt accessibility features defunct

  5. Research project • By University of Wollongong and GSA InfoComm • Study and benchmarking of OECD countries and their use of accessibility criteria • Detailed analysis of 6 case-studies: • USA • Japan • European Commission • Ireland • UK • Canada

  6. Findings • Majority of OECD countries include ICT accessibility criteria in public procurement law • In this group, the great majority allow discretion in application of accessibility criteria when procuring ICTs • Half have some reporting and compliance measures in place

  7. USA is a model case • Section 508 is an amendment of the Rehabilitation Act to enable US public servants with disabilities to use office equipment on an equitable basis to able-bodied peers • Section 508 standards ie accessibility criteria for use by government agencies in their tender documents • THIS IS MANDATORY • Buy Accessible Wizard • Together with anti-discrimination legislation, has had positive impact on companies (eg Apple & Microsoft) when designing mainstream products that are more accessible • Section 508 guidelines have been “refreshed”

  8. European Commission • Mandate 376 for 3 European standards bodies to develop: • Accessibility guidelines in line with Section 508 in USA • Toolkit for suppliers • European Accessibility legislation, if enacted, will make accessibility criteria in public procurement mandatory in European Union countries

  9. Conclusion • Research indicates that mandatory inclusion of accessibility criteria has the most impact • Action on accessibility criteria in public procurement in European countries and USA should influence ICT accessibility internationally

  10. Resources and further information • Research report and advocacy toolkit: http://www.gsa.com.au/portfolio.html • Further information: • Gunela Astbrink – g.astbrink@gsa.com.au • Will Tibben – wjt@uow.edu.au This research was made possible through the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network’s Grants Scheme. Research funding was also supported by the Faculty of Informatics, University of Wollongong

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