Mexico. In the framework of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, which was celebrated on December 3, the Federal Institute of Telecommunications, IFT, endorsed its commitment to promote access to telecommunications services for people with disabilities.
To this end, the Plenary of the Institute recently approved the "General Guidelines for Accessibility to Telecommunications Services for Users with Disabilities", whose purpose is to promote, within its field of competence, access to such services on equal terms with other users.
They establish that the Concessionaires and Authorized must provide attention and advice to users with disabilities without any discrimination and on equal terms with other users, when providing public telecommunications services.
It is important to note that it is the first time in the history of Mexico that comprehensive guidelines are issued for the telecommunications sector with direct and favorable impact for people with disabilities.
Some elements that establish these guidelines are:
- The Concessionaires and Authorized that provide the fixed and mobile telephony service must have a catalog of equipment with accessibility functionalities for people with disabilities.
- The care centers must have the elements that allow people with disabilities to receive care in conditions of equality and equity, such as: signage, accessible routes and care areas, entrances with service animals, waiting areas with priority seats for people with disabilities and a space reserved for people in wheelchairs.
- Design mechanisms that allow users with disabilities to carry out procedures remotely, by telephone or through electronic means, or the possibility of being assisted by a third party to carry them out.
Likewise, the IFT will promote, through the dissemination and promotion, access to and use of Public Telecommunications Services for people with disabilities, as well as new information and communication systems and technologies, including the Internet.
In this regard, the Institute has acted through:
- Courses for the use of mobile devices, in coordination with the Center Illuminates, Blindness and Low Vision.
- Development of the Catalog of Accessible Mobile Devices, developed with the Mobile Manufacturers Forum (http://movilesaccesibles.ift.org.mx/catalogo_desktop/app/web/busqueda.php)
- Compilation of accessible applications available on the IFT portal. (http://www.ift.org.mx/usuarios-telefonia-movil/apps-accesibles)
- Forums, such as "Accessible America III: Information and Communication for All", organized in conjunction with the International Telecommunication Union.
- Accessible Institutional Portal, according to the W3C standard.
According to inegi's 2014 National Survey of Demographic Dynamics, in Mexico there are just over 7 million people with some type of disability, who, thanks to telecommunications services and Information and Communication Technologies, may be able to access essential public services.
