Digitukiteko recognition award of 2023 to the Remote support service for the deaf-blind people

On Friday 12 May 2023, the Digital Skills Week awarded the digital support act of the year for the first time. Two honourable mentions were also awarded.

The panel of experts described the winner Remote support service for the deaf-blind people as empowering people by means of technology. Computers are the most important information channel and communication tool for hearing impaired and deaf-blind people, but helping the target group is challenging. The support provider must understand the needs of the target group and boldly seek and experiment with different solutions. The service solves issues in an insightful manner, the panel reported.

One of the two honorary mentions, the first one was given to the Ikääntyvien laitelainaamo (aids to borrow for the elderly) of the Vanhusten Turva foundation, where senior citizens can borrow tablets with a SIM card free of charge and be inspired by all things digital. The second honorary mention was awarded to the Verkko haltuun project (about digital skills and inclusion) of Oulun Kehitysvammaisten Tuki ry, which has developed diverse digital activities that support inclusion and communality for persons with intellectual disabilities and their close networks.

– The number and diversity of the proposals were a pleasant surprise for the electoral panel of the Digitukiteko recognition award. They describe the need for digital support, supply and digital society in an interesting and topical manner. The main theme of this year's Digital Skills Week (in Finnish) is digital courage and it was strongly highlighted in the proposals related to the provision of digital support, says Minna Piirainen, Chief Specialist in digital support at the Digital and Population Data Services Agency.

The Digitukiteko recognition award of the year will be awarded for the first time this year. In the future, it will be awarded annually. The award will be granted to parties that have developed digital support and digital competence in an insightful and customer-oriented manner. The recognition recipient can be an individual, a working group, an organisation or a project. The panel of experts that elected the winner included a representative of the VTKL – The Finnish Association for the Welfare of Older Adults, Moniheli ry, Tieke ry, the Confederation of Finnish Industries, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Kehitysvammatuki 57 ry.

For more detailed selection criteria and all proposed digital support actions, please, visit the website of the Digital and Population Data Services Agency at: https://dvv.fi/en/digitukiteko-recognition-award