Accessibility

Accessibility Guidelines for Authors

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At AfriCHI, we are committed to fostering inclusion and accessibility for all participants. Ensuring that your submissions and the conference are accessible is essential, as it ensures that everyone, including people with disabilities, can engage with your work. This guide will help you make your PDFs and presentations accessible and compliant with international accessibility standards.

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What is Accessibility?

Accessibility means designing content that can be accessed by everyone, including people with disabilities. This includes individuals with visual, auditory, cognitive, and mobility impairments.

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By making your PDFs accessible, you ensure that:

Screen reader users can easily navigate and understand your document.
People with limited vision can access content with appropriate contrast and resizable text.
All users can interact with your document in meaningful ways.

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Key Steps to Make Your PDFs Accessible

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1. Use Semantic Structure

Proper document structure helps users with screen readers understand the flow of your content.

Use headings (`<h1>`, `<h2>`, etc.) to outline sections logically.
Include a clear title.
Ensure the reading order is intuitive.

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2. Provide Alternative Text for Images

For every image, graphic, or figure in your PDF, include alt text that describes its content or purpose.

Use concise but descriptive text.
If the image is decorative, mark it as such to avoid unnecessary reading for screen reader users.
To add alt text in Microsoft Word: right click the image and select “Edit Alt Text”, then enter the descriptive text in the Alt Text pane.
To add alt text in Google Docs: click on the image and from the top menu select Format then “Alt Text”. Add the descriptive text in the “Description” field.
To add alt text in Adobe Acrobat: select “Tools” from the menu then “Accessibility” then “Set Alternate Text”. Click through each image and add appropriate descriptions in the pop-up window.
How to come up with alt text descriptions: 10 minutes on YouTube.

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3. Ensure Text Is Selectable and Searchable

Ensure all text in your PDF is live (not an image of text) so it can be selected, searched, and read by assistive technologies. Avoid scanning your document as an image.

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4. Use Sufficient Color Contrast

Ensure that text and background color combinations have enough contrast to be readable by users with low vision or color blindness.

Use a color contrast checker to verify that your contrast ratio meets the WCAG AA standards (minimum 4.5:1).

You may use the free and online WebAIM color contrast checker tool to see if your colors follow the accessibility standards

https://webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker/

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5. Add Descriptive Links

Make sure links are descriptive so that users know where the link will take them.

Instead of "Click here," use descriptive text like "Read the conference submission guidelines."

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6. Use Accessible Fonts

Choose readable fonts and avoid overly decorative ones.

Ensure that text size can be resized without loss of content or functionality.

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7. Add Bookmarks and Metadata

For longer documents, use bookmarks to help users navigate between sections easily.

Include metadata (e.g., document title, author, subject) so users know what the document contains.

How to add bookmarks in Word: 5 minutes on Youtube, Microsoft Support Guide.
How to update metadata in Word: 3 Minutes on YouTube.

8. Tag Your PDF

Tagging ensures that the structure of your document is conveyed to screen readers.

Most word processors have an option to tag PDFs automatically when exporting.
Cross-check to ensure that headings, lists, and tables are tagged properly.
How to add tags in Adobe Acrobat: 1 minute on YouTube.

9. Test Your PDF for Accessibility

Use tools like Adobe Acrobat’s built-in accessibility checker or online PDF accessibility checkers to verify that your document meets accessibility guidelines.

Doc Axess – Online – Free
PAVE – Online – Free
PDFix – Download – Freemium
axesCheck – Online & Download – Free
Microsoft 365 Accessibility Checker – Online & Download – Paid
Adobe Acrobat Accessibility Checker (Pro) – Online & Download – Paid (Free trial available)

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Resources for Further Guidance