Upcoming Events

Asia-Pacific Regional Forum on Mainstreaming ICT Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities

About the Event

The "Asia-Pacific Regional Forum on Mainstreaming ICT Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities" to be held in Bangkok, Thailand from 25 to 27 August 2009.

The Forum is jointly organized by

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
The United Nations Economicand Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Region (UNESCAP)

Hosted by

The Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (MICT), Government of Kingdom of Thailand.

Supported by

The Global Initiative for Inclusive ICTs (G3ict)
National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) of Thailand
Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy (DBCDE) of Australia
The National Electronics and Computer Technology Center (NECTEC) of Thailand

Please download ITU Invitation Letter, Practical Information for Participants, Provisional Agenda, Invitation Letter from : http://www.dpiap.org/news/zip/Mainstreaming_ICT_Accessibilit.zip

For more information, Please visit : http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/asp/CMS/Events/2009/PwDs/index.asp

With 139 countries having signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ("CRPD"), and 51 having ratified it as of October 2008, legislative and regulatory activities related to the implementation of its digital accessibility agenda will be a priority among ITU Member States. Yet, few references and guidelines are available for country regulatorys and legislators to implement such measures or foster national programmes supporting the digital accessibility agenda of the CRPD.

In order to address this challenge, G3ict and ITU organised a joint global forum on 21 April 2008 (http://g3ict.com/events/schedule/event_overview/p/eventId_59/id_196 ) on Digital Accessibility standards in relation to the CRPD. At this occasion, ITU-D and G3ict launched a "Toolkit for Policy Makers ( http://g3ict.com/resource_center/publications_and_reports/p/productCategory_whitepapers/subCat_0/id_142) ", an online tool designed to provide practical references and case studies to support implementation of the digital accessibility agenda of the CRPD at country level. G3ict also released Version 1 of its self-evaluation methodology and is currently collecting country data for is benchmarking programme, the "Digital Accessibility Index" in cooperation with Disabled People's International and the support of the law firm Powers, Pyle, Sutter and Veryille.

The upcoming Asia-Pacific Regional Workshop aims to:

Bring together policy makers, regulators, operators, industry, NGOs and international organisations involved with persons with disabilities, as well as experts and ICT professionals including disabled persons from across the region and beyond;
Discuss the global online "Toolkit for Policy Makers" that will support stakeholders in developing policies and strategies to address ICT accessibility and service needs from persons with disabilities to meet the dispositions of the CRPD;
Ensure proper publicity and generate momentum in support of the implementation of the Digital Accessibility Agenda of the CRPD focusing on practical implementation at country level; and,
Exchange country experiences and case studies among participants as well as learn about innovations of accessibility and assistive technologies and applications.

To register for the Forum, participants are kindly requested to complete the Registration form and send it to Mr. Wisit Atipayakoon ( wisit.atipayakoon@itu.int ) by 24 July 2009 at the latest. Fellowships are available for eligible countries with a priority given to Least Developed Countries and Low-Income Developing Countries respectively. The deadline for fellowship request is 24 July 2009.

For more information about ITU-BDT Special Initiative on Persons with Disabilities, please visit http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/sis/index.phtml

Opportunity to Speak / Demonstrate

We are pleased to invite speakers to deliver presentations and/or demonstrate techniques, technologies, devices aimed at assisting or facilitating persons with disabilities in use and application of ICTs. This event will bring together a wide cross-section of stakeholders from the public sector, industry and civil society. It is also a unique opportunity to exchange relevant information, network with similar interest groups and to reach out to wider stakeholder community.

For the industry this is an opportunity to showcase their products and services while gaining a deeper understanding of the needs from the stakeholders. Demonstration of assistive technologies and innovative accessibilities are most welcome.

Please inform us as soon as possible of which session in the provisonal agenda best suits your interests. In this regard, please contact:

Mr. Wisit Atipayakoon

ITU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

Tel: +66 2 574 8565

Fax: +66 2 574 9328

Email: wisit.atipayakoon@itu.int

Additional Information

Country: Thailand
Website: N/A
Email: N/A
Phone: N/A
Contact Person: N/A
Source: http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/asp/CMS/Events/2009/PwDs/index.asp
When: 22/7/2009