Digital Accessibility Statement

The Federal Ministry of Defence (FMoD) is committed to making its web presence www.bundeswehr.de and mobile applications accessible in accordance with the national legislation transposing Directive (EU) 2016/2102 of the European Parliament and of the Council. The technical requirements for accessibility are derived from the Ordinance on Accessible Information Technology 2.0 (BITVBarrierefreie-Informationstechnik-Verordnung 2.0).

This Accessibility Statement applies to the content offered in the Bundeswehr’s web presence.

When was the Digital Accessibility Statement drawn up?

This statement was drawn up and last revised on 27 July 2023.

Digital accessibility was reviewed in the context of its technical implementation by the Bundeswehr’s ITInformationstechnik service provider BWI GmbHGesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung.

How accessible is this web presence?

This web presence and the mobile app “BwBundeswehr -Newsradar” are partially accessible. The requirements of the Ordinance on Accessible Information Technology (BITVBarrierefreie-Informationstechnik-Verordnung  2.0) are partially fulfilled.

Which parts of the website www.bundeswehr.de are not accessible?

1. Barrier: control elements without alternative text
   Description: alternative text is not displayed where the text box is too small.
2. Barrier: audio files without alternatives
   Description: alternatives for audio files and silent videos convey only a small part of the content.
3. Barrier: videos without subtitles
   Description: videos with sound do not have the necessary subtitles.
4. Barrier: videos without audio description and/or a full text alternative
   Description: videos containing image-centric segments necessitate an alternative to the images because the sound is not enough to allow full comprehension.
5. Barrier: not all PDF documents are accessible.
   Description: newly uploaded PDF documents should be prepared to be accessible, and older ones should be replaced with an accessible version.
6. Barrier: content structure
   Description: incorrect formatting of text can have a negative impact on reading fluency.
7. Barrier: words and sections in other languages not marked up in some cases.
   Description: English words are not marked up with the “lang” attribute in some cases.
8. Barrier: in some cases, the syntax of the HTML markup is incorrect.
   Description: the syntax contains several errors, e. g. attributes are used incorrectly, HTML elements are nested incorrectly, and external services included in the website cause errors in the source code.

Plans are currently underway to eliminate these known problems. As soon as planning is complete, the plans will be published on this site.

Which parts of the mobile app BwBundeswehr-Newsradar are not accessible?

1. Barrier: the voice-based user interface does not work properly on iOS.
   Description: a technical error in the technology used makes it necessary to use the voice-based user interface in combination with VoiceOver because otherwise the overlays generated by the voice-based user interface will not be displayed.
2. Barrier: no alternative ways of access available.
   Description: news can only be viewed via the news overview page and its filters.
3. Barrier: the status messages displayed when the news items and filters are updated are not accessible.
   Description: if an update of displayed news is triggered by a drag gesture in the news overview and no update is available, a status message at the top of the screen where the news start will state that no update is available. This information will not be conveyed to assistive technologies such as screen readers. Selecting a different quick filter will automatically reset detail filters, and this will be indicated in a status message at the top of the screen. This message, too, will not be conveyed to assistive technologies such as screen readers.
4. Barrier: in some cases, the visible label and the accessible name differ from each other.
   Description: the button “Filter” on the news overview page cannot be activated by means of its accessible name. The visible label and the accessible name differ too much from each other (“Filter” and “Detailfilter”). For the time being, use grid navigation or number navigation on your Android or iOS device.

Plans are currently underway to eliminate these known problems. As soon as planning is complete, the plans will be published on this site.

Who is the point of contact for comments or questions about digital accessibility?

Have you noticed problems with the accessibility of content on www.bundeswehr.de? Feel free to contact us. Please use the contact form for this purpose.

Contacting the Arbitration Service

If you believe that you are being put at a disadvantage because www.bundeswehr.de does not have a sufficiently accessible design, you can contact the Arbitration Service according to the German Act on Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (BGGBehindertengleichstellungsgesetz).

Arbitration Service according to the German Act on Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities
Federal Government Commissioner for Matters relating to Persons with Disabilities
Mauerstraße 53
10117 Berlin

Phone: +49 30 18 527-2805
E-mail: info@schlichtungsstelle-bgg.de
Website: www.schlichtungsstelle-bgg.de