A quick guide to Accessible Standards of Canada

Canada fully believes in providing equal access to all disabled citizens of Canada. For this purpose, the Canadian government has time and again come up with accessibility laws and policies that are not only impactful and stringent but also meet all the specific needs of the disabled community. The Accessible Canada Act (ACA) is the most important activity and is focused on making Canada a barrier-free, accessible country. The accessibility-related rules and regulations are well-defined by the Canadian government. In this article, you will get a brief overview of the accessible standards of Canada.

Accessible Canada Act (ACA):

The Accessibility Canada Act, which was formally known as “Bill C-81” was passed on May 13, 2019, and finally came into effect on July 11, 2019. ACA focuses on ensuring that the disabled community should be consulted when programs, policies and laws are being developed as they can impact them. The Canadian government works closely with those organizations that advocates on behalf of the disabled community.

An accessibility framework:

The barriers to federal jurisdiction across Canada are prevented by ACA. Some of the most progressive accessibility laws are stringently followed by Canada’s territories and provinces in the world, including the most popular Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). There was no country-wide accessibility legislation by Canada until the ACA was passed.

A specific framework for enforcing, developing and implementing accessibility standards has been established by the legislation in seven priority areas. Those priority areas are:

• Employment

• Communication other than ICT

• Information and communication technologies (ICT)

• The built environment

• Transportation

• The procurement of goods, services and facilities

• The design and delivery of programs and services.

The aim of Accessible standards of Canada:

The objective of Accessible standards Canada is to build a barrier-free Canada by January 1, 2040. The aim is to develop standards that can remove the barriers that prevent disabled citizens from accessing a website, application or other necessary resources. These standards come under the priority area.

The Accessible standards Canada is developed by the involvement of four groups. The following are the four groups:

1. Board: Professional expertise and wide experience is provided by board members. The priorities for standards are decided by the board. The selection criteria need to be approved and also the reference terms for Technical committees.

2. Technical committees: A specific process is followed by these committees to develop standards. This process includes consensus, balanced representation and other important elements.

3. The staff of Accessibility standards: The specific standards that need to be developed are recommended to the board by the staff members. The order is also decided based on specific considerations and public consultations. They support the operation and formation of committees. A confirmation ensues that the right process is being followed by the committees.

4. Diverse disabled communities: Consultation will take place with those people who have extensive experience. This means that when standards are being developed then voices will be heard. Apart from that, knowledge will also be shared. Standards Council of Canada requirement is taken into consideration wherein public consultation is included in the development process.

If standards need to be developed appropriately, then organizations can look after working with other standard development organizations such as Canadian Standards Association. This will in turn help in optimizing the accessibility standards of Canada by tapping into the expertise and strengths of others.

For example, the Canadian standards association works with an organization in need of accessibility standards to co-brand some standards so that duplicating efforts can be avoided. In this manner, a considerable amount of value is bought by the organization.

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