Brief History
As part of a concerted strategy to promote awareness and build national capacities for accessibility with reasonable accommodation, the delegates of the UN funded “Interregional Seminar and Regional Demonstration Workshop on Accessible Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) and Persons with Disabilities” prepared a scheme for training and resource materials on norms, standards and substantive aspects of accessibility with reasonable accommodation to build national capacities and to provide input to activities to promote and realize accessible ICT in countries and to provide input to the proposed “accessible ICT network”.
Workshops were divided into three regions of the Philippines; Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. Mr. Leo Valdes of Vision Office Support Services was the expert-lecturer.
The first Regional Workshop on Accessible ICT for Persons with Disabilities sponsored by NCDA and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) was held in Tagaytay City, Cavite. Web accessibility was introduced to 25 webmasters from different government, non-government agencies and the academe. Webmasters from the Luzon and Metro Manila areas were invited to attend. NCC-CICT also participated in the workshop.
Follow up activities were formed. These are:
- Search for Good Practices – The NCC and NCDA periodically review participants’ web sites for improvements and ideas. Model web sites by participants will be introduced during succeeding workshops.
- Disabled-Friendly Website Awards – These were given to those participating websites who passed the accessibility recommendations set by NCC and NCDA.
- Development of Standards and Training Manuals – NCC takes a lead role in coordinating the development of technical recommendations in preparation for a national policy, and in the development of training manuals for these recommendations.
Disabled Friendly Web Site Awardees
Among the initial recipients of the "Disabled Friendly Website Awards" were the following:
- www.congress.gov.ph – Official Website of the Philippine House of Representatives (HOR)
– awarded June 2, 2005
– Dahlia Villacorte also awarded as web designer - www.atriev.org.ph – Official Website of the Adaptive Technology for Rehabilitation, Integration, and Empowerment of the Visually Impaired (ATRIEV)
– awarded December 12, 2005
– Lourdes Borgonia also awarded as web designer - www.mccid.edu.ph – Official Website of the Manila Christian Computer Institute for the Deaf Foundation, Inc. (MCCID)
– awarded June 29, 2006
– Remberto Esposa Jr. also awarded as web designer - www.dlsu.edu.ph – Official Website of the De La Salle University – Manila
– awarded February 22, 2007
– Lemuel Cabia also awarded as web designer in behalf of DLSU Web Development Team
Incidentally, the web designers of these award winning sites were participants of the first regional seminar in Tagaytay City.
Visit the Vision Office Web Site at http://www.visionoffice.com/ictpwd/awards.htm to read the details of the awarding.
