Kyiv, 28 November 2024 – The Digital Accessibility Competence Centre, which will be responsible for the development of the accessibility of Diia e-government services and the information resources of the Ministry of Digital Transformation, has been launched in Ukraine.  

The centre will also advise other authorities on the implementation of digital accessibility on their resources and communication channels. 

It will help state bodies, project managers, and developers ensure the inclusiveness of digital resources and services for all Ukrainians. The centre was created at the state enterprise Diia by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine together with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Ukraine. 

The presentation of the new centre included the holding of its first training session for civil servants aimed at raising awareness of digital accessibility standards and tools. 

“We strive for technology to become a tool for inclusion, not a barrier,” said Kostiantyn Radzivil, First Deputy General Director of the State Enterprise Diia, at the opening event. “The creation of this centre is a step towards ensuring equal access to digital resources for all Ukrainians. The centre will be a platform for training and support, and the implementation of digital accessibility for online services and resources for the Ministry of Digital Transformation and other state bodies.” 

Attendees from business also participated in the opening event, with representatives of state railway company Ukrzaliznytsia, private postal service Nova Poshta, and Internet-based transport and delivery business Uklon sharing their experience in implementing inclusivity. In particular, Ukrzaliznytsia presented its inclusive rail wagons and the successful adaptation of the UZ mobile application to the requirements of digital accessibility; Nova Poshta showcased its first barrier-free branch and the launch of the first barrier-free marathon; and Uklon demonstrated its inclusive car class and a sign language dictionary in the Uklon application for communicating with drivers who have hearing impairments. 

“The promotion of digital accessibility has been and is one of the most important work streams for UNDP,” said Olena Ursu, Democratic Governance Team Leader at UNDP in Ukraine.   

“Over the past four years, together with the Ministry of Digital Transformation, with funding from Sweden, we have implemented vital initiatives to increase state web accessibility in Ukraine, such as legislative changes, offline training for almost 2,000 public personnel, and thematic studies,” Ursu added. “The creation of the new centre will institutionalise all these efforts, scale them up, and make them irreversible and sustainable. We at UNDP are proud to be part of this success story of creating a new body to help build a more inclusive and barrier-free environment in Ukraine.” 

The centre is to be a permanent platform for providing consultations, training, and the implementation of accessibility standards on web resources, applications, and social media communications. Its team prepares guides and educational materials on digital accessibility, and also, together with UNDP, participates in monitoring the accessibility of 100 government websites. The results of the latest monitoring round will be presented in early 2025. 

The training session was organised by the Ministry of Digital Transformation together with the United Nations Development Programme in Ukraine as part of the DIA Support Project, which is implemented with the support of the Government of Sweden. 

Previously the partners initiated a number of legislative changes designed to stimulate the improvement of the web accessibility of government resources in Ukraine: In 2022, a new state standard on web accessibility came into effect, which became mandatory for compliance by state authorities – the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted a corresponding Resolution. UNDP also carried out the first official Ukrainian translation of the international guidelines that formed the basis of the state standard – to bring its requirements closer to domestic developers. Over the past two years, the partners have also conducted a series of training sessions for civil servants from the central and regional authorities, teaching about 2,000 government representatives the basics of web accessibility. 

Media inquiries: 

Yuliia Samus, UNDP Ukraine Communications Team Leader, yuliia.samus@undp.org