Digital accessibilities are getting the greatest attention in higher education institutions in the past few years. While ICT has brought many benefits to students and faculty, it also creates barriers and challenges for students with disabilities due to the inaccessibility of digital tools and learning materials. Faculty members play an important role in inclusive higher education also they could emphasize the need to train faculty and students about digital accessibility to achieve inclusion in higher education.

For creating awareness of Digital inclusion and accessibility among Faculty members and Students. A day-long hybrid seminar on “Digital Accessibility Key to Promoting Inclusive University Initiatives in Bangladesh” was jointly conducted by the Institute of Information and Communication Technology (IICT) of BUET with the collaboration of Aspire to Innovate (a2i), ICT division, Government of Bangladesh, on October 10th, 2022, at BUET alongside with the Zoom platform. The seminar started with a welcome speech by Prof. Dr. Rubaiyat Hossain Mondal, Director, the Institute of Information and Communication Technology, BUET.

Vashkar Bhattacharjee, who has lifetime experiences of visual disability, working as the National Consultant for Accessibility in the (a2i) Program of ICT Division, Bangladesh Government, was the keynote speaker. He discussed the significant obstacles and opportunities faced by disabled students in higher education, as well as the active role of policymakers in Bangladesh. He also gave a brief overview of multimedia talking books, accessible reading materials, an accessible dictionary, web accessibility, DAISY (Digital Accessible Information System), etc., as well as research directions for digital accessibility on a national scale. In conclusion, he provided a summary of national and international laws and policies pertaining to digital accessibility and emphasized the importance of constructing a disability innovation lab in Bangladesh.

After the speech of the keynote speaker, Prof. Dr. Saiful Islam, Professor at IICT, BUET, concluded the seminar by thanking all the guests, organizers, facilitators, and participants.

This seminar was graced by Dr. Mufti Mahmud, Associate Professor of Nottingham Trent University (UK); Prof. Dr. Md. Liakot Ali, Dr. Hossen Asiful Mustafa, Associate Professor, and Dr. Md. Jarez Miah, Assistant Professor of IICT, BUET and Manik Mahmud, Head of Social Innovation Cluster, a2i. In the near future, BUET and the ICT division intend to host additional workshops and seminars regarding digital accessibility in Bangladesh.

The event was covered by Mr. Shafak Shahriar Sozol, a  Research Assistant  of  DIVERSASIA project at BUET and Mr. M M Tariqul Huq, a young professional of a2i program. ICT Division, Bangladesh.