Signs Media Kenya Limited (SMKL) is among companies around the globe committed to enhancing disability inclusion through overall support for their employees and customers with disabilities.
assitALL app, one of the company’s products was among 71 Awardees from 42 countries who were selected as the Zero Project Awardees 2023 for its outstanding innovation, impact, and potential for long-term growth, success, and scalability.
The Zero Project Conference 2023 held in Vienna, Austria awarded Innovative Solutions from all sectors of society – civil, public, and private sectors – with a high percentage of them using ICT-based approaches – to empower persons with disabilities to live more independent lives.
With the 2023 Research theme for the awardees being “Independent Living and Political Participation “the Zero Project was committed to supporting the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD), by researching, identifying, communicating, and supporting Innovative Solutions globally and across all sectors of society.
The Zero Project 2023 annual research cycle emphasizes that persons with disabilities have the right to choose where and with whom they live on an equal basis with others, as stipulated by Article 19 of the CRPD.
This includes access to residential support services, including personal assistance, and support to prevent isolation from the community.
The Project’s annual research cycle is centered on four main areas of research: independent living and political participation; accessibility; employment; and education. ICT-related innovations.
The Awardees received the opportunity to showcase their innovative work at the conference which gave them an opportunity to feature in the annual Zero Project Report that will be shared online and in print with disability inclusion experts.
Other awardees from Kenya include: EnableMe Kenya awarded for being a platform for all disability-related information nationwide in a low-income country and Safaricom, NCPWD and i2i-NCPWD Career platform, awarded for being an online job-platform for persons with disabilities in a sub-Saharan country.
assistALL is an app that allows anybody across the world to access sign language interpretation services to enhance inclusion & break communication barriers.
The app is the first mobile app in Kenya to provide sign language interpretation services and can be downloaded from the google play store and AppStore.
The founder and Managing Director of Signs Media Kenya Limited, Luke Muleka during the launch of the assitALL app said it was birthed after extensive research on the Deaf culture, which he says is different from the hearing and makes interaction a challenge hence the app helps break the barrier.