This year’s Diversity for Tech Summit aims to address the critical need for disability inclusion in Africa's rapidly growing tech sector. Held in partnership with inABLE, this summit will bring together leaders, innovators, policymakers, and advocates to explore strategies, share insights, and promote actions that foster an inclusive tech environment for people with disabilities across the continent.
inABLE is a nonprofit organization based in Nairobi, Kenya & Washington DC with a mission to empower African youth with disabilities through assistive technology and digital accessibility. inABLE achieves its mission by establishing various programs and collaborating with local, regional, and international partners. Through these strategic partnerships, inABLE has achieved remarkable success in empowering African youth with disabilities to use technology as a tool for education, employment, and independence.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimated 1.3 billion people, or 16% of the global population, experience a significant disability. Approximately 80% of persons with disabilities live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and are often marginalized in society, without access to the same opportunities as non-disabled persons.
For persons with disabilities, access to assistive technology (AT) can be life-changing, enabling them to live independent and autonomous lives. The Global Report on Assistive Technology estimates that 2.5 billion people need assistive technology and that this will rise to 3.5 billion by 2050. However, about nine in 10 people with disabilities do not have access to assistive technologies that could help them live independent lives. This summit will bring together disability and accessibility experts, people with lived experiences, policy makers, researchers, innovators, entrepreneurs and governments to share knowledge and create awareness across Africa about the importance of leaving no one behind.
Target Audience:
- Policymakers and Regulators
- Mobile Network Operators
- AI Researchers and Developers
- Business Leaders and Entrepreneurs
- Advocacy Groups and NGOs
11.45 – 13.00: AI in disability and accessibility
As Artificial Intelligence (AI) rapidly transforms industries and societies, ensuring that all communities can benefit, including users with disabilities, becomes critical. An increasing number of mobile phone applications embrace AI, and these applications need to work well given the different sensory and physical needs of people with disabilities. This goal cannot be achieved unless people with disabilities are included during all stages of development: planning, design, data collection, and testing. When people with disabilities are excluded, 16% of the population can be disenfranchised; and this is the population that can most benefit from AI innovations for education, employment, and simply living life. This session will delve into the role of design and policy in creating disability-inclusive AI. Experts from various fields will discuss how inclusive policies can be developed and implemented to address biases, promote diversity, and ensure that AI serves the broader public good.
Discussion areas:
- Addressing the digital divide and access to disability-inclusive AI technologies.
- Examples of mobile offerings that are advancing disability-inclusive AI.
- Ethical considerations in AI policy making and analysis of inclusivity gaps in existing policies
- Case studies of policy interventions that have successfully addressed AI biases.
- Role of multi-stakeholder collaboration in policy development.
- Examples of successful collaborations between governments, industry, and civil society.
14:15 – 15:30: Accessibility of mobile devices and mobile content
Mobile technology continues to evolve and permeate daily life. Ensuring that mobile content and devices are accessible to all users, including those with disabilities, becomes increasingly important. Current gaps in accessibility reflect a need for increased awareness and implementation education for the mobile phone industry. This session will provide an overview of how mobile devices that do not incorporate accessibility can become exclusionary. Barriers can occur when the mobile devices themselves lack accessibility features, or when the content resident on the mobile device has not been designed accessibly. This session will discuss the critical role of stakeholders in ensuring an end-to-end accessible experience on mobile devices. Through collaborative efforts, we can create disability-inclusive mobile environments that benefit individuals and society.
Discussion areas:
- Overview of the state of mobile content and device accessibility.
- Identification of existing gaps and challenges faced by users with disabilities.
- Strategies for MNOs to enhance accessibility in their services and products.
- Case studies of successful accessibility initiatives by MNOs.
- Policy recommendations and action plans for policymakers and MNOs
