NIUA announces a 5-day training programme on PDF accessibility in association with BarrierBreak and the UN in India

PDF is one of the most commonly used formats for electronically published documents. Corporates, Government organizations, educational institutes share information in the form of annual reports, books, brochures, publications or even user manuals on the web as PDF files. The question that often gets asked is that are PDFs accessible to people with disabilities. Not all businesses are yet aware of what makes a PDF accessible or how they can create them effectively.

To break this barrier, BarrierBreak in association with the UN in India is undertaking a 5-day training programme on PDF accessibility for the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA). All three organizations are committed to promoting the implementation of accessibility practices for all in South Asia.

The training programme will be conducted by BarrierBreak’s accessibility expert for the NIUA team, which will cover detailed steps in making accessible, tagged PDF files. The objective of the course is to help the participants understand the characteristics of an accessible PDF and the steps involved in making them accessible.

“PDF is one of the most widely used format to share information on the web. Yet most of the PDF’s today are inaccessible for people with disabilities or people who use screen readers. By attending this course, we aim to ensure that the participants gain the skill set to create an accessible PDF file from the start, as well as fix accessibility issues in existing PDF files.” Shilpi Kapoor, CEO, BarrierBreak.

The training programme will cover:

•  Introduction to PDF and importance of accessibility
• Best practices when authoring PDF documents
•  Step-by-step workflow and process for creating accessible PDFs
•  Tips and Tricks to help you apply PDF accessibility practices
•  Accessibility compliance verification

“NIUA takes pride in researching, creating knowledge and building a strong voice on growing subjects of concern in the urban sector. By introducing this training program, NIUA is taking an important step towards providing accessible solutions to build digital inclusion. The participants would be provided a completion certificate at the end of the training program. We hope that this training program would be informative, enjoyable and above all valuable for the team.” Director, NIUA.

About NIUA

The National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) is India’s leading national think tank on urban planning and development. As a hub for the generation and dissemination of cutting-edge research in the urban sector, NIUA seeks to provide innovative solutions to address the challenges of a fast-urbanizing India and pave the way for more inclusive and sustainable cities of the future.

About BarrierBreak

BarrierBreak is the leader in offshore Digital Accessibility testing and consulting based in India, founded with a strong belief that that technology can empower people with disabilities to live independently. With a team of 240 plus employees, 65% of them being people with disabilities, they are passionate about accessibility and are working to find new and better ways towards achieving inclusion.