Vodacom's Specific Needs programme has offered accessible products to disabled and elderly customers in South Africa since 2004: a free National Relay Service for deaf and speech-impaired callers, the Blindshell Classic 2 phone, and bespoke bundles.
Details
Maturity
Established
Promoter
Vodacom Group
Period
2004–ongoing (National Relay Service launched November 2022)
Vodacom Group has run a dedicated 'Specific Needs' strand of its inclusion strategy since 2004, offering accessible devices, a free National Relay Service (launched November 2022) for Deaf and speech-impaired customers, and a dedicated Specific Needs Contact Centre.
Results
A 2020 comparative study by CIPESA reviewing 10 telecom operators across five African countries found most treated accessibility as a secondary concern, but singled out Vodacom (South Africa) and Safaricom (Kenya) as the two operators 'leading in improving accessibility'.
Implementation
Indicative cost
Medium (€50k–€500k)
Time to results
Long (> 3 years)
Staffing & skills
Specific Needs Contact Centre agents, National Relay Service operators
Conditions for success
group-level policy commitment to accessibility carried through from Vodafone group culture
offering the National Relay Service free of charge to Vodacom SIM holders
Commonly funded by
Own resources / municipal budget
Indicative funding routes for practices of this type — always check each programme's current calls and eligibility rules.
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Data sources
Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.
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