A11y Week 2024 (15–17 May 2024)

15 APR 2024

A11y Week is the Government’s digital inclusion learning festival for all public officers, especially those making Singapore a Smart (and Inclusive) Nation.

This year, GovTech’s A11y Team celebrates Global Accessibility Awareness Day with folks from Apple, Microsoft, Smart BFA, and many more. Join us as we unpack why “Progress Over Perfection” enables us to build a more accessible and inclusive Singapore together.

Registration is free but seats are limited, so save your spot at go.gov.sg/aw24-reg, and put it on your calendar today!

Have questions? Drop us a line at accessibility@tech.gov.sg.

Here’s what you can look forward to:

Event Details

Date:
Wednesday, May 15 to Friday, May 17

Time:
10:00 am to 5:30 pm

Venues:

Old Hill Street Police Station (MCI & MCCY Building) — View Map
The new South-East Asia Apple Developer Center — View Map

Day One – Wednesday, May 15

Venue: Old Hill Street Police Station (MCI & MCCY Building)

Time	Programme
9:30-10:00am	Registration
10:00-10:15am	Opening Speech Mrs Josephine Teo Minister for Communications and Information, and Minister-in-charge of Smart Nation and Cybersecurity.
10:15-11:30am	Fireside Panel: How should we forge the path to digital inclusion? - A candid discussion on what digital inclusion means for Singapore. Dr Janil Puthucheary Senior Minister of State at Ministry of Communications and Information, and Minister-in-charge of GovTech. Cassandra Chiu, Psychotherapist and Social Advocate. President, Disabled People’s Association. Executive Director, K9Assistance. Judy Wee, Executive Director, Muscular Dystrophy Association (Singapore). Dr Wong Meng Ee, Associate Professor, Early Childhood and Special Needs Education Academic Group, National Institute of Education (NIE). Chairman, iC2 PrepHouse.
11:30-12:00pm	Networking & Interactive Exhibition: Experience A11y - Curated, hands-on activities to get you started on your digital inclusion journey. A11y Team
2:00-4:00pm	Interactive Gallery and Workshop: Empathy Lab - An immersive learning session to experience the impact of digital exclusion. A11y Team
2:00-4:00pm	It’s Us, Not Them – Practical steps towards inclusive engagement In collaboration with NCSS Social Service Institute: Gain valuable insights into the ways we can better interact and engage with Persons with Disabilities in the workplace and in our various contexts as public officers (i.e. In service centres, citizen engagement or user research). In this interactive workshop, we will be busting some common misconceptions around disability and sharing tips to foster empathy in our teams so that together, we can take the next step towards a more inclusive and enabling workplace culture! NCSS Social Service Institute
4:00-5:30pm	Micro-Workshops: Accessibility Dojo - Technical tips that you can implement in your digital product immediately. A11y Team
	End of Day One

Day Two – Thursday, May 16

Global Accessibility Awareness Day

Venue: Old Hill Street Police Station (MCI & MCCY Building)

Time	Programme
9:30-10:00am	Registration
10:00-11:00am	Presentation: A11y & AI - How Microsoft uses computer vision, image and speech recognition, natural language processing and machine learning to help visually impaired or blind people understand more about who and what is around them. Rory Preddy, Principal Cloud Advocate at Microsoft. Saqib Shaikh, Project Lead for Seeing AI at Microsoft.
11:00-11:30am	Presentation: Mapping Wheelchair Accessibility — The SmartBFA Experience - SmartBFA’s journey in enabling barrier-free access for Singapore. Kai Reuber, Project Lead at SmartBFA. Tan Hwee Xian, Project Lead at SmartBFA.
11:30-12:00pm	Presentation: Advancing Accessibility by NLB - Discover how NLB embraces a user-centred design approach to address various accessibility projects while navigating challenges along the way. Vilashini Subramaniam, Manager (Accessibility), Equaliser Office, National Library Board.
12:00-12:30pm	Networking & Interactive Exhibition: Experience A11y - Curated, hands-on activities to get you started on your digital inclusion journey. Mr Tan Kiat How Senior Minister of State at Ministry of Communications and Information. A11y Team
2:00-5:00pm	Workshop: Co-Creation Lab - An interactive session for digital product teams and end users to collaborate on solutions for specific challenges and opportunities. A11y Team Participation: By invitation only
	End of Day Two

Day Three – Friday, May 17

In Collaboration With Apple

Venue: The new South-East Asia Apple Developer Center

Time	Programme
9:30-10:00am	Registration
10:00-12:00pm	Inclusion Inspires Innovation - Apple’s approach and decision-making process for building inclusive products. Interactive demos Discussions Presentations Featuring David Niemeijer, Founder and CEO of AssistiveWare. Participation: For officers in leadership and management roles
1:30-5:00pm	Designing for Everyone - Apple’s practical design and development considerations for product development. Technical workshops Interactive demos Presentations Featuring David Niemeijer, Founder and CEO of AssistiveWare. Participation: For officers in product management, design and development roles
	End of A11y Week 2024