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5.3.6.7 Accessibility standards for persons with the platform on which m-services and apps can
disabilities ride. This innovative approach would resonate Chapter 5
particularly in the developing world, as it would
According to the World Report on Disability, enable m-services and apps to reach remote
produced jointly by the World Health Organization and uneconomical areas faster. It would also
and the World Bank, more than 1 billion people enable the implementation of national broadband
in the world today experience disability in one plans and network upgrades. In this way, ICT
form or another. This statistic represents infrastructure would be optimized as a utility for
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about one-seventh of the earth’s inhabitants. provision of m-services and apps by all sectors
As of September 2015, the Convention on the such as education, health, sport, transport and
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) had agricultural support.
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159 signatories and 157 parties, making the
Convention the fastest-negotiated human rights
treaty in the history of the UN. Article 9 of 5.3.8 Trust and confidence
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this Convention articulates the need to ensure
access to ICTs, including the Internet, for persons A lack of trust and confidence can act as a major
with disabilities. This commitment gains a new barrier to growth in a data-driven economy.
prominence in the context of emerging m-services Regulators should instigate an increase in
and applications and their linkage to services such consumer protection by encouraging MNOs to
as health, education and banking. The mobile enhance the security of their networks through
apps trend underlines the need for a policy priority adoption of encryption technologies. This is a
to enable people with disabilities to overcome ICT critical requirement to ensure that sensitive data
access barriers and to build-in accessibility as a being transferred over the network (for example,
feature of networks, systems and policies. mobile payments) is transmitted securely and
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seamlessly.
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Implementation of the CRPD treaty commitments
at the national level will entail articulating Robust security measures are, therefore, critical
domestic public policies to achieve minimum for the whole value chain, including device and
accessibility standards and guidelines for chip manufacturers as well as software vendors.
services provided to the public. It will also lead Reducing vulnerabilities in devices, applications
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to development of accessibility and assistive- and web services should be a priority for everyone
technology standards for mobile products and in the digital ecosystem. Trust and confidence in
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services, ensuring greater interoperability in order ICT security and privacy is recognized as one of the
to increase the availability of cheaper assistive main pillars of the Information Society. 63
technologies, products and services.
More and more, regulators are being called upon
to respond to numerous public security concerns
5.3.7 Infrastructure sharing or “mobile menaces” involving serious crimes --
kidnapping, terrorism, drug trafficking and money
The reach of an MNO network has in the past laundering -- committed using mobile phones. This
largely determined its profitability and even calls for regulatory action to preserve the integrity
its market dominance. Not surprisingly, then, and reputation of mobile services as safe for
incumbent operators have often resisted efforts to society and consumers to use. Kenya, for example,
encourage infrastructure-sharing and maintained dealt with such concerns through legislation
efforts to keep their competitive advantage over mandating that MNOs keep details of individuals
newer entrants. But preserving infrastructure who subscribe to their services. 64
silos means that some consumers cannot access
m-services and apps not hosted on their service In this light, the development of comprehensive
providers’ networks. privacy and data-protection legislation at the
domestic level becomes vital, and regulators
One of the innovative regulatory approaches to should play a key role in shaping this going
address this would be to mandate infrastructure- forward. The security and privacy of peoples’
sharing as a way to broaden the geographical personal information, however, remains a
reach of MNO networks and in this way enlarge

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