[Irl-dean] eAccessibility - Council conclusions

[Frank Mulcahy]

Hi All,

please find below the Council of the European Union (Transport, Telecommunications and Energy) conclusions on eAccessibility of last week.

Some of the most relevant issues are as follows:
  a.. role of standardisation and certification with relation to eAccessibility 
  b.. revision of the Electronic Communication regulatory framework 
  c.. role of public procurement 
  d.. implementation the Web Accessibility guidelines in public web sites 
  e.. involvement of people with disabilities

eAccessibility - Council conclusions  (PROVISIONAL VERSION 1./5.XII.2005 14636/05 (Presse 303)

In the same context the Council adopted the following conclusions:



"THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

1. WELCOMES

. the Communication on eAccessibility adopted by the Commission on 13 September.

2. RECALLS

. the eEurope 2002 action plan adopted in the Feira European Council of 19 and 20 June 2000 with the objective of achieving participation for all in the knowledge-based economy;

. the Council conclusions of 1st and 2nd of December 2003 on the follow up of the European Year of People with Disabilities and the promotion of Equal Opportunities for

People with Disabilities;

. the Ministerial Declaration on eInclusion from 2003;

. the i2010 Communication and in particular the third priority achieving an Inclusive European Information Society including policy guidance on eAccessibility.

3. RECOGNISES

. that access to ICT has a beneficial impact on the employment prospects and quality of life of people with disabilities and older persons;

. that the creation of an inclusive information society will be instrumental to the achievement of the economic and social objectives of the Lisbon agenda.



4. WELCOMES THE COMMISSION'S INTENTION TO

. evaluate the effectiveness of eAccessibillity policies after two years and, if necessary, to propose additional measures;

. gather data to measure progress on eAccessibility and to include in the Commission's Annual Information Society Progress Report on the i2010 initiative reporting on actions undertaken to improve eAccessibility.

5. INVITES THE COMMISSION TO

. liaise with Member States on initiatives and policy approaches to improve eAccessibility;

. investigate the role that certification can play to increase eAccessibility while considering the interest of all relevant stakeholders;

. work with european and national standardisation bodies to promote and, where necessary, develop european eAccessibility standards;

. continue to consider the needs of people with disabilities and older persons in the process of the revision of the Electronic Communication regulatory framework;

. work with Member States to develop eAccessibility requirements in the public procurement domain and promote their use in public tenders;

. facilitate a dialogue between the key actors in the field, by providing, in cooperation with Member States, adequate fora for users and industry to meet with policy makers.

6. INVITES THE MEMBER STATES TO

. promote access to ICT and accessibility to mainstream technologies for people with disabilities and older persons, aiming at interoperable solutions across Member States;

. continue to implement the Web Accessibility guidelines in their public web sites and to support the work of the European Design for All and eAccessibility Network, avoiding market fragmentation while responding to the evolution of web technologies;

. include in their regular reporting within the i2010 framework their progress in eAccessibility;

. use all instruments at their disposal to improve eAccessibility, for example by including in their public procurements eAccessibility requirements.

7. ENCOURAGES ALL STAKEHOLDERS TO

. develop, participate in and support EU and national eAccessibility initiatives improving the availability of accessible ICT products and services and their compatibility with assistive technologies;

. address the needs of persons with disabilities and older persons with regard to ICT products and services and to involve them and their organisations in the process of development of such products and services."



Frank Mulcahy,
'Franmar',
2 Castle Village Court,
Celbridge,
Co. Kildare
Ireland

Tel. & Fax: +353 1627 1314
Mobile/Cell Phone: +353 8723 44934
E-mail: fmulcahy at iol.ie  or
frankmulcahy2005 at yahoo.co.uk
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