{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,10]],"date-time":"2025-10-10T01:08:46Z","timestamp":1760058526009,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":55,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,15]],"date-time":"2025-04-15T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1744675200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology","award":["00503-2023"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["00503-2023"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Informatics"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Web accessibility is essential for e-government in the Philippines to ensure that all citizens, including those with disabilities, can access important information and services. This study evaluates government web accessibility using the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 from the World Wide Web Consortium and web presence based on the Government Website Template Design guidelines. A combination of automated testing tools and visual inspections was used for the assessment. Results showed significant discrepancies between web presence and web accessibility. Web presence compliance ranged from 28% to 82.67%, averaging 53.43%. Web accessibility scored higher, with compliance rates ranging from 62.32% to 97.1% and an average of 82.5%. This indicates that while many government agencies have focused on accessibility, there is a need to improve their digital services and visibility. A well-structured and user-friendly website is vital. However, without expanded online services, mobile accessibility, and transactional features, the full potential of digital governance remains untapped. Future studies are directed to aid government agencies with adopting accessible design principles, conducting regular audits, collaborating with disability advocacy groups, and integrating assistive technologies to foster a more inclusive and efficient digital government ecosystem.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/informatics12020041","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,15]],"date-time":"2025-04-15T09:41:11Z","timestamp":1744710071000},"page":"41","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Are We Inclusive? Accessibility Challenges in Philippine E-Government Websites"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0003-1371-1469","authenticated-orcid":false,"suffix":"Jr.","given":"Paul","family":"Bokingkito","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Computer Studies, Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, Iligan City 9200, Philippines"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-4993-4297","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jerame","family":"Beloy","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Computer Studies, Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, Iligan City 9200, Philippines"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7984-3742","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jerina Jean","family":"Ecleo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Computer Studies, Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, Iligan City 9200, Philippines"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6672-8772","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Apple Rose","family":"Alce","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Computer Studies, Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, Iligan City 9200, Philippines"}]},{"given":"Nenen","family":"Borinaga","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Computer Studies, Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, Iligan City 9200, Philippines"}]},{"given":"Adrian","family":"Galido","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Computer Studies, Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, Iligan City 9200, Philippines"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,15]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"183","article-title":"E-Government and E-Governance: Various or Multifarious Concepts","volume":"5","author":"Grigalashvili","year":"2022","journal-title":"Int. J. Sci. Manag. Res."},{"key":"ref_2","first-page":"2004","article-title":"E-Governance: A Critical Review of E-Government Systems Features and Frameworks for Success","volume":"7","author":"Palma","year":"2023","journal-title":"Int. J. Comput. Sci. Res."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Baroudi, M., Alia, M., and Marashdih, A.W. (2020, January 7\u20139). Evaluation of Accessibility and Usability of Higher Education Institutions\u2019 Websites of Jordan. Proceedings of the 2020 11th International Conference on Information and Communication Systems (ICICS), Irbid, Jordan.","DOI":"10.1109\/ICICS49469.2020.239565"},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"48254","DOI":"10.1109\/ACCESS.2021.3068917","article-title":"Usability and Accessibility Assessment of Saudi Arabia Mobile E-Government Websites","volume":"9","author":"Alsudairi","year":"2021","journal-title":"IEEE Access"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"737","DOI":"10.1007\/s10209-021-00800-8","article-title":"Assessing the Usability, Accessibility, and Mobile Readiness of E-Government Websites: A Case Study in India","volume":"21","author":"Agrawal","year":"2022","journal-title":"Univers. Access Inf. Soc."},{"key":"ref_6","first-page":"126","article-title":"Exploring and Assessing Government Website as an Instrument of E-Governance at the Local Government Level in Pangasinan","volume":"9","author":"Legaspi","year":"2021","journal-title":"ASEAN Multidiscip. Res. J."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Bakhsh, M., and Mehmood, A. (2012, January 17\u201319). Web Accessibility for Disabled: A Case Study of Government Websites in Pakistan. Proceedings of the 2012 10th International Conference on Frontiers of Information Technology, Islamabad, Pakistan.","DOI":"10.1109\/FIT.2012.68"},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Othman, A., Al Mutawaa, A., Al Tamimi, A., and Al Mansouri, M. (2023). Assessing the Readiness of Government and Semi-Government Institutions in Qatar for Inclusive and Sustainable ICT Accessibility: Introducing the MARSAD Tool. Sustainability, 15.","DOI":"10.3390\/su15043853"},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"121102","DOI":"10.1016\/j.techfore.2021.121102","article-title":"Future of E-Government: An Integrated Conceptual Framework","volume":"173","author":"Malodia","year":"2021","journal-title":"Technol. Forecast. Soc. Change"},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Lujan-Mora, S., Navarrete, R., and Penafiel, M. (2014, January 24\u201325). Egovernment and Web Accessibility in South America. Proceedings of the 2014 First International Conference on eDemocracy and eGovernment (ICEDEG), Quito, Ecuador.","DOI":"10.1109\/ICEDEG.2014.6819953"},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"967","DOI":"10.1016\/j.procs.2017.11.333","article-title":"The Accessibility of Cyprus Islands\u2019 Higher Education Institution Websites","volume":"120","author":"Uyar","year":"2017","journal-title":"Procedia Comput. Sci."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"139","DOI":"10.1007\/s10209-020-00716-9","article-title":"Accessibility, Usability, and Security Evaluation of Hungarian Government Websites","volume":"20","author":"Csontos","year":"2021","journal-title":"Univers. Access Inf. Soc."},{"key":"ref_13","first-page":"583","article-title":"Web Assessment of Libyan Government e-Government Services","volume":"9","author":"Murah","year":"2018","journal-title":"Int. J. Adv. Comput. Sci. Appl."},{"key":"ref_14","unstructured":"W3C-WAI (2024, August 05). Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). Available online: https:\/\/www.w3.org\/WAI\/standards-guidelines\/wcag\/."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"435","DOI":"10.1007\/s10209-022-00948-x","article-title":"Usability and Transparency in the Design of a Tool for Automatic Support for Web Accessibility Validation","volume":"23","author":"Iannuzzi","year":"2024","journal-title":"Univers. Access Inf. Soc."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"58233","DOI":"10.1109\/ACCESS.2022.3179375","article-title":"Comparison of Online Accessibility Evaluation Tools: An Analysis of Tool Effectiveness","volume":"10","author":"Ismailova","year":"2022","journal-title":"IEEE Access"},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"179","DOI":"10.1007\/s10209-019-00702-w","article-title":"Web Accessibility Evaluation of Top-Ranking University Websites in Spain, Chile, and Mexico","volume":"20","year":"2021","journal-title":"Univers. Access Inf. Soc."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"157","DOI":"10.1007\/s10209-020-00715-w","article-title":"Accessibility, Usability, Quality Performance, and Readability Evaluation of University Websites of Turkey: A Comparative Study of State and Private Universities","volume":"20","year":"2021","journal-title":"Univers. Access Inf. Soc."},{"key":"ref_19","first-page":"49","article-title":"Accessibility Evaluation and Performance Analysis of e-Government Websites in Nigeria","volume":"7","author":"Adepoju","year":"2016","journal-title":"J. Adv. Inf. Technol."},{"key":"ref_20","unstructured":"Cabauatan, A.J. (2024). The Politics of Inclusion: Perspectives on Persons with Disabilities in Society, Alexis Jose Cabauatan."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"187","DOI":"10.1111\/ijsw.12498","article-title":"Revisiting Auxiliary Social Services for Persons with Disability: The Philippines Case","volume":"31","author":"Susmerano","year":"2022","journal-title":"Int. J. Soc. Welf."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Salvio, K.B.V. (2020, January 27\u201328). Extending the Evaluation on Philippine E-Government Services on its Accessibility for Disabled Person. Proceedings of the 2020 Fourth World Conference on Smart Trends in Systems, Security and Sustainability (WorldS4), London, UK.","DOI":"10.1109\/WorldS450073.2020.9210374"},{"key":"ref_23","unstructured":"DICT (2024, July 21). DICT Memo Circular 2019. Available online: https:\/\/www.pwag.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/DICT-Memo-Circular-2019-04-txt-format.txt."},{"key":"ref_24","unstructured":"Authority, P.S. (2024, July 21). Persons with Disability in the Philippines: Results from the 2010 Census, Available online: https:\/\/psa.gov.ph\/content\/persons-disability-philippines-results-2010-census."},{"key":"ref_25","first-page":"1073","article-title":"Creating a Framework for Care Needs Hub for Persons with Disabilities and Senior Citizens","volume":"14","author":"Red","year":"2023","journal-title":"Int. J. Adv. Comput. Sci. Appl."},{"key":"ref_26","unstructured":"(2025, March 23). United Nations UN E-Government Knowledgebase. Available online: https:\/\/publicadministration.un.org\/egovkb\/en-us\/Data\/Country-Information\/id\/134-Philippines."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"71","DOI":"10.11114\/smc.v12i1.6559","article-title":"Digital Inclusion: Analyzing Social Media Accessibility Features for Students with Visual Impairments","volume":"12","author":"Khasawneh","year":"2023","journal-title":"Stud. Media Commun."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"538","DOI":"10.1145\/3567733","article-title":"Remote Graphic-Based Teaching for Pupils with Visual Impairments: Understanding Current Practices and Co-designing an Accessible Tool with Special Education Teachers","volume":"6","author":"Zhao","year":"2022","journal-title":"Proc. ACM-Hum.-Comput. Interact."},{"key":"ref_29","unstructured":"McClure, N.A. (2023). Now You See It: Creating Accessible Online Content for the Blind\/Visually Impaired, The University of West Florida."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1145\/3507661","article-title":"Development and Evaluation of a Tool for Assisting Content Creators in Making PDF Files More Accessible","volume":"15","author":"Pradhan","year":"2022","journal-title":"ACM Trans. Access. Comput."},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Firth, A. (2024). Low Vision and Color Blindness. Practical Web Accessibility: A Comprehensive Guide to Digital Inclusion, Ashley Firth.","DOI":"10.1007\/979-8-8688-0152-5"},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Ohshiro, K., and Cartwright, M. (2022, January 23\u201326). How People Who Are Deaf, Deaf, and Hard of Hearing Use Technology in Creative Sound Activities. Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, Athens, Greece.","DOI":"10.1145\/3517428.3550396"},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1145\/3555195","article-title":"An Exploration of Captioning Practices and Challenges of Individual Content Creators on YouTube for People with Hearing Impairments","volume":"6","author":"Li","year":"2022","journal-title":"Proceedings ACM-Hum.-Comput. Interact."},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Seixas Pereira, L., Coelho, J., Rodrigues, A., Guerreiro, J., Guerreiro, T., and Duarte, C. (2022, January 23\u201326). Authoring Accessible Media Content on Social Networks. Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, Athens, Greece.","DOI":"10.1145\/3517428.3544882"},{"key":"ref_35","unstructured":"Malalasekara, S.A.P. (2023). Breaking Barriers to Computer Accessibility: A Wireless Mouse System for People with Hand Disabilities. [Master\u2019s Thesis, Metropolia University of Applied Sciences]."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Gartland, S., Flynn, P., Carneiro, M.A., Holloway, G., Fialho, J.d.S., Cullen, J., Hamilton, E., Harris, A., and Cullen, C. (2022). The State of Web Accessibility for People with Cognitive Disabilities: A Rapid Evidence Assessment. Behav. Sci., 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/bs12020026"},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"21582440211056614","DOI":"10.1177\/21582440211056614","article-title":"Web Accessibility of the Top Research-Intensive Universities in the UK","volume":"11","author":"Alim","year":"2021","journal-title":"SAGE Open"},{"key":"ref_38","first-page":"1","article-title":"Improved Access and Participation for Persons with Disabilities in Local Governance","volume":"4","author":"Pimentel","year":"2020","journal-title":"Policy Gov. Rev."},{"key":"ref_39","unstructured":"UNASPA (2024, July 23). Government to E-government to E-society. Available online: https:\/\/publicadministration.un.org\/egovkb\/en-us\/Home\/E-Government-Survey-in-Media\/ID\/1408\/Government-to-E-government-to-E-society."},{"key":"ref_40","unstructured":"DOST-ICT (2024, July 21). Government Website Template Design (GWTD) Guidelines. Available online: https:\/\/navy.mil.ph\/images\/DOST%20Government%20Website%20Template%20Design%20(GWTD)%20Guidelines.pdf."},{"key":"ref_41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"663","DOI":"10.1007\/s10209-021-00861-9","article-title":"Accessibility analysis using WCAG 2.1: Evidence from Indian e-government websites","volume":"22","author":"Paul","year":"2023","journal-title":"Univers. Access Inf. Soc."},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"101783","DOI":"10.1016\/j.giq.2022.101783","article-title":"Examining the antecedents and outcomes of smart government usage: An integrated model","volume":"40","author":"Hujran","year":"2023","journal-title":"Gov. Inf. Q."},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"584","DOI":"10.1016\/j.giq.2014.07.002","article-title":"Usability and credibility of e-government websites","volume":"31","author":"Huang","year":"2014","journal-title":"Gov. Inf. Q."},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"133","DOI":"10.1007\/s10209-021-00825-z","article-title":"Accessibility of university websites worldwide: A systematic literature review","volume":"22","author":"Valverde","year":"2023","journal-title":"Univers. Access Inf. Soc."},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Ferri, D., and Favalli, S. (2018). Web Accessibility for People with Disabilities in the European Union: Paving the Road to Social Inclusion. Societies, 8.","DOI":"10.3390\/soc8020040"},{"key":"ref_46","first-page":"172","article-title":"Web Accessibility Challenges","volume":"7","author":"Abuaddous","year":"2016","journal-title":"Int. J. Adv. Comput. Sci. Appl."},{"key":"ref_47","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.4018\/IJEBR.2020070101","article-title":"Factors Influencing Web Accessibility of Corporate Information: Indian Evidence","volume":"16","author":"Singh","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int. J. -Bus. Res."},{"key":"ref_48","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2205","DOI":"10.3923\/jas.2010.2205.2210","article-title":"Government to E-government to E-society","volume":"10","author":"S","year":"2010","journal-title":"J. Appl. Sci."},{"key":"ref_49","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"13","DOI":"10.3126\/prod.v2i1.65723","article-title":"Citizen Charter as Governance Reform Initiative for Quality Services","volume":"2","author":"Kaphle","year":"2024","journal-title":"J. Product. Discourse"},{"key":"ref_50","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Desmal, A.J., Alsaeed, M., Hamid, S., and Zulait, A.H. (2023, January 25\u201327). Leveraging Social Media in Mobile Government: Enhancing Citizen Engagement and Service Delivery. Proceedings of the 2023 IEEE 8th International Conference on Engineering Technologies and Applied Sciences (ICETAS), Bahrain, Bahrain.","DOI":"10.1109\/ICETAS59148.2023.10346362"},{"key":"ref_51","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"47","DOI":"10.1080\/13600830701194711","article-title":"Hungary\u2019s Electronic Signature Act: Enhancing Economic Development with Secure Electronic Commerce Transactions","volume":"16","author":"Blythe","year":"2007","journal-title":"Inf. Commun. Technol. Law"},{"key":"ref_52","first-page":"12","article-title":"Digital Governance: Citizen Perceptions and Expectations of Online Public Services","volume":"1","author":"Indama","year":"2022","journal-title":"Interdiscip. Stud. Soc. Law Politics"},{"key":"ref_53","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2744","DOI":"10.51594\/ijarss.v6i11.1724","article-title":"Digital transformation in public sector services: Enhancing productivity and accountability through scalable software solutions","volume":"6","author":"Ikwuanusi","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Appl. Res. Soc. Sci."},{"key":"ref_54","unstructured":"Lawrence, E. (2025, March 25). User-Centered Design to Enhance Accessibility and Usability in Digital Systems. Available online: https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/386339454_User_centered_design_to_enhance_accessibility_and_usability_in_digital_systems."},{"key":"ref_55","first-page":"1173","article-title":"A Systematic Literature Review of E-Government Implementation in Developing Countries: Examining Urban-Rural Disparities, Institutional Capacity, and Socio-Cultural Factors in the Context of Local Governance and Progress towards SDG 16.6","volume":"8","author":"Omweri","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Res. Innov. Soc. Sci."}],"container-title":["Informatics"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2227-9709\/12\/2\/41\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,9]],"date-time":"2025-10-09T17:15:03Z","timestamp":1760030103000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2227-9709\/12\/2\/41"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,15]]},"references-count":55,"journal-issue":{"issue":"2","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,6]]}},"alternative-id":["informatics12020041"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/informatics12020041","relation":{},"ISSN":["2227-9709"],"issn-type":[{"type":"electronic","value":"2227-9709"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,15]]}}}