Project implementation period
15 July 2022 – 30 April 2026
Project funding source and value
The project is funded under Lithuania’s Recovery and Resilience Plan “New Generation Lithuania”. The total project value is EUR 3,666,996.28.
Project objective
To create an inclusive publishing system in Lithuania that ensures better access to cultural content for people who are unable to read standard printed text.
Problems addressed by the project
People who are unable to read standard printed text do not have equal access to information, cultural content and services, which places them at risk of information, cultural and social exclusion. A lack of skills, knowledge or opportunities to study and use information and communication technologies reduces people’s ability to participate in the labour market, access digital services and take a full part in cultural and social life.
According to data from the Institute of Hygiene, more than 500,000 people in Lithuania have various conditions that prevent them from reading standard printed text. Although Lithuanian legislation provides for adapting the information environment and using information and communication technologies to support the social inclusion of people with disabilities, these people still face greater barriers to participation in the information society.
One of the main reasons is limited access to information resources: only 15% of all books published in Lithuania are available in formats accessible to people who cannot read standard print. The Lithuanian Audiosensory Library (LAB) is the principal, and one of the few, producers of publications in accessible formats in Lithuania. It manages ELVIS, the Electronic Publication Management Information System, as a unified platform providing access to accessible information resources.
LAB has extensive experience in producing publications in accessible formats. However, the experience of similar libraries in other countries shows that the production of accessible publications needs to be automated in order to increase the number of titles available in accessible formats.
Changes in the European Union’s legal framework are also driving progress in information accessibility. On 17 April 2019, Directive (EU) 2019/882 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the accessibility requirements for products and services was adopted. The Directive, commonly known as the European Accessibility Act, requires products and services placed on the EU market to meet accessibility requirements from 2025 onwards.
The European Accessibility Act directly affects Lithuania’s information services sector, and the publishing sector in particular, as electronically published materials must be accessible to people with disabilities. Discussions with publishers at EU level have shown that the sector is not fully prepared for these changes, primarily because of a lack of knowledge and expertise in accessibility.
To ensure that all relevant stakeholders in Lithuania are prepared for the proper implementation of the European Accessibility Act, publishing processes need to be coordinated and accessibility competences among Lithuanian publishers strengthened. To address these challenges, LAB plans to share its knowledge and expertise in producing information in accessible formats with publishing professionals, bringing together the capacities of both the public and private sectors to improve access to information for everyone.
Project activities
- The modernised ELVIS system will include tools for the automated generation of accessible digital publications in EPUB and MP3 formats, a digital Braille syllabification system, and a module for certifying the quality and accessibility of digital publications for people with disabilities. ELVIS will also be adapted to support inclusive publishing workflows by implementing accessibility metadata standards and information security measures.
- The modernised ELVIS system will incorporate solutions based on contemporary technologies to make the production of accessible publications more efficient. These will include a Lithuanian-language speech synthesiser based on modern technologies and neural networks, as well as a tool for recognising and interpreting the content of illustrations.
- To strengthen the competences of the publishing sector, a training programme on the principles and implementation of inclusive publishing will be developed, together with a dedicated inclusive publishing platform. Training will also be organised for publishers across Lithuania.
- Information and publicity campaigns will be organised to increase awareness of the modernised ELVIS system among target users and to promote the principles of inclusive publishing within Lithuania’s publishing sector.
Project target groups
- people who are unable to read standard printed text;
- older people who, due to health conditions, are unable to use conventional cultural services and products;
- people with disabilities, with the aim of enabling them to participate fully and independently in society.
Project results
The project aims to modernise LAB’s production processes for publications in accessible formats by introducing contemporary technologies that will make it possible to adapt digital information more quickly and at lower cost. It will also enable Lithuania’s publishing sector to produce digital publications in accessible formats and ensure their quality by establishing a certification mechanism for compliance with accessibility requirements.
Following implementation of the project, the proportion of electronic publications available in formats accessible to people who cannot read standard print is expected to increase to 20%.
The project contributes to the implementation of Lithuania’s 2021–2030 Culture and Creativity Development Programme, which seeks to improve public access to cultural resources. The programme aims to develop modern, technology-based access to accessible cultural content and information resources and to improve opportunities for people who cannot read standard printed text to use accessible digital information resources.
Once the project has been implemented, people who cannot read standard print will have one-stop access to accessible digital publications produced by different publishers and made available when they are needed. Users will also have greater assurance regarding the quality of accessible publications and benefit from a broader range of available content.
Following implementation of the project, the annual number of users of public digital services, products and processes is expected to reach 5,150.
More information about the project is available on the EU Investments website.