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According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 1.3 billion people worldwide have a significant disability, affecting more than one in six people.
According to OKEENEA, 17% of the global population suffers from visual impairment, 6% from hearing impairment, and 2.6% from intellectual disability.
Thus, in France in 2021, **6.8 million French people**, or 13% of those aged 15 and over, reported having at least one severe limitation in a physical, sensory, or cognitive function.
French law defines disability as follows:
A disability is any limitation of activity or restriction of participation in social life experienced in one's environment due to a substantial, lasting, or permanent alteration of one or more physical, sensory, mental, cognitive, or psychological functions, a multiple disability, or a disabling health disorder.
Including people with temporary disabilities due to illness or accident, we reach a figure of 9.6 million people, or 24% of the working population aged 15 to 64 according to INSEE, which is substantial.
But what is their relationship with digital technology?
According to the Homère study, 65% of visually impaired people use the internet daily, and while 60% of them are independent in writing emails, only 10% are independent for online procedures, which is far too low!
Yet, it only takes applying a set of best practices to design quality and adapted digital services that facilitate their daily lives.
What is Web Accessibility?
Web accessibility refers to the design, development, and implementation of websites, applications, and online content so that they can be used, understood, and accessed by all users, regardless of their abilities or disabilities. The goal of web accessibility is to enable all individuals, including those with visual, auditory, motor, cognitive, or other disabilities, to navigate, interact, and access online information effectively and independently.
In other words, Web accessibility aims to remove barriers that might prevent some people from fully benefiting from the services and content available on the Internet. This includes the use of assistive technologies such as screen readers for blind or visually impaired individuals, subtitles for deaf or hard-of-hearing individuals, as well as trap-free interfaces for screen interpreters and a clear content structure to facilitate navigation for everyone.
The different standards
Several international, European, and French standards govern web accessibility. Structured as reference frameworks, they describe how to make digital experiences easier for people with disabilities.
International standard
The WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) are developed by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
They provide detailed guidelines for making Web content accessible. They are structured around four fundamental principles for Web content accessibility:
- Perceivable,
- Operable,
- Understandable,
- Robust.
And thirteen guidelines provide the basic objectives.
The WCAG are divided into three levels of compliance: A, AA, and AAA, each with increasingly stringent accessibility criteria.
European standard
The European standard EN 301 549 is based on WCAG 2.0 and adopts the same levels of compliance (A, AA, AAA). It aims to harmonize accessibility requirements for ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) products and services within the European Union.
French standard
The RGAA (General Accessibility Reference for Administrations) is the web accessibility standard in France for public websites.
It is aligned with the WCAG and evolves according to WCAG updates.
The current version of the RGAA is 4.1 and was published on February 18, 2021.
The RGAA includes 106 criteria, and its version 4 eliminates the distinction between level A and AA, which is no longer justified as all these rules are mandatory.
But who is it for?
According to French law, you must consider accessibility rules if you are:
- a state service;
- a local authority;
- a public institution;
- organizations entrusted with a public service mission;
- companies with a turnover in France exceeding 250 million euros;
- organizations of general interest.
Prejudices about accessible websites
A normative and legal framework exists for building accessible digital services, so why do so many websites still not take the leap?
There are plenty of misconceptions and questions on the topic. Let's clear up a few.
"Web accessibility is not necessary because people with disabilities are not our target audience."
Are you so sure about that? What allows you to determine this?
Among your collaborators using your business application or your clients utilizing your digital services, some may have visible or invisible disabilities.
It's also a real boost for your image: showing that you care about all your users builds trust with both customers and employees.
And accessibility benefits everyone -- older users, people using assistive tech, or just someone with a broken arm.
"Web accessibility is too expensive and time-consuming."
Yes and no, we would be lying if we said it doesn't require dedicating a minimum amount of time, but think of it as a profitable long-term investment.
Additionally, by integrating accessibility from the start of a project, you will avoid additional costs later on.
The key is to think about it from the start: during design, content writing, and development. If everyone on the team is aware, it costs far less than retrofitting later.
At each stage, test with users who have disabilities, assistive technologies, and validation tools. Fix issues as you go.
Bonus: these tests also improve the overall quality of your deliverables.
"Are accessible sites always ugly?"
Why would it be? People often assume that accessibility means giving up on good-looking design. An accessible site can absolutely be attractive and modern.
For example, good contrast between text and background improves readability. Picking the right colors matters too -- in France, the proportion of colorblind individuals is about 8% among men and 0.45% among women. That makes a real difference for a lot of people.
A clear layout and simple navigation make the experience better for everyone, not just people with disabilities.
"Accessibility standards are too complicated and difficult to understand."
WCAG can look intimidating at first, sure. But there are plenty of tools and resources today to help you tackle them step by step.
Nothing insurmountable here. Whether you're a designer, developer, content writer, or advertiser, you can make a difference at your level. Accessibility is everyone's responsibility.
