LouderPages will develop two TTS voices for the Government of North Macedonia. The work was awarded after a competitive tendering process managed by the United Nations Development Programme.
The text-to-speech software will be especially significant as a tool for acquiring knowledge and information, and for facilitating smooth communication. The app will be made available to students, job seekers, interns, employees and all who face difficulties in processing textual information.
“The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities affirms that all persons with all types of disabilities must enjoy all human rights and fundamental freedoms. In the current COVID-19 crisis, the UN’s maxim to “leave no one behind” is even more relevant, especially when talking about inclusive and integrated societies. The new app will expand digital accessibility for visually impaired persons, thus creating better conditions for independent living, free access to information, freedom of speech and expression and communication, non-discrimination, full and effective participation and involvement in society,“ added Narine Sahakyan, UNDP’s Resident Representative in North Macedonia.
According to the President of the National Association of People with Visual Impairment, the development of this text-to-speech solution is a step forward towards improving the quality of life for this group of citizens.
“It brings me great pleasure that blind persons will finally get a suitable and easily understandable text-to-speech solution that they can use in their native language and which expresses the text in a natural voice. This digital application will increase opportunities for each blind person in terms of mobility, household chores, studying, socializing, as well as finding employment and earning their own income, and that is invaluable for all of us,“ said Zarko Selkovski, the President of the National Association of People with Visual Impairment,
UNDP Press Release