Accessibility

The Croatian Academic and Research Network – CARNET recognizes the importance of digital accessibility for all users, with an emphasis on facilitating access to public services and information for people with disabilities by complying with Directive (EU) 2016/2102 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 October 2016 on the accessibility of the websites and mobile applications of public sector bodies.

CARNET continuously improves the user experience by applying the relevant accessibility standards according to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.2, Level AA), Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), an organization that deals with the standardization of network technology.

CARNET has developed Digital Accessibility Guidelines to ensure the accessibility of its digital content or applications already in the development process.

As a public sector body, CARNET is obligated to ensure the accessibility of its websites in accordance with the Act on the Accessibility of Websites and Mobile Applications of Public Sector Bodies of the Republic of Croatia (Official Gazette 17/19) of September 23, 2019, which transposes into national legislation Directive (EU) 2016/2102 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the accessibility of the websites and mobile applications of public sector bodies, as well as with the Act on Accessibility Requirements for Products and Services (Official Gazette 89/25) of June 6, 2025.

This accessibility statement refers to CARNET's corporate website, at the web address www.carnet.hr.

Accessibility status

The web location www.carnet.hr partially complies with the Act on the Accessibility of Websites and Mobile Applications of Public Sector Bodies. Most of the requirements of the European standard EN 301 549 V1.1.2 (2015-04) have been met, with some exceptions. 

Inaccessible content

Based on four general principles for ensuring accessibility – perceivability, operability, understandability, and robustness – exceptions to compliance with the Accessibility Act are evident in the following content areas:

• Possibility of observation

The dynamic homepage leads to content that does not always display the same way on screen readers used by visually impaired individuals.  

• Operability

Mouse-activated areas, whether shaped like text or icons, are not large enough for users with motor disabilities. Searching without pressing the Enter The key is not enabled in the full-screen search engine in the same way it is enabled in the search engines of individual blocks. Elements from the website footer, the “CARNET +” link, and the site map expand downwards, requiring the mouse to move down to be fully visible, instead of expanding upwards and maintaining the distance from the bottom of the page. By expanding these elements downwards, the current solution leaves the distance from the top of the page unchanged.

When searching for CARNET member institutions, the entire subgroup should function as a button to expand it, or the “+” icon on the right should be larger and more prominent. The “News” block in the website header is not intuitive for screen reader users because readers do not recognize that existing links filter news. Therefore, a better technical solution needs to be found.

• Comprehensibility

In addition to the arrow-shaped markings, used for browsing the list of CARNET's collaborating institutions by scrolling left and right, it should be further indicated that there are more collaborating institutions than those visible on screen.

• Stability

In Internet Explorer, the page content always looks the same to screen readers. However, in other browsers, the content does not always appear the same way.

Increasing the level of accessibility

CARNET will implement corrective measures to address the inaccessible content of its corporate website as much as possible, following the training of employees to create, manage, and maintain website content and software solutions for mobile devices under the Accessibility Act. This will be implemented by the Central State Office for the Development of Digital Society, in cooperation with the State School of Public Administration, the Information Commissioner, and the national umbrella organization of persons with disabilities.

Preparation of this Statement of Accessibility

This Statement was prepared on September 23, 2019, and revised on October 8, 2025, in accordance with the Accessibility Statement Template compliant with Directive (EU) 2016/2102 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the accessibility of the websites and mobile applications of public sector bodies, as established by Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/1523 of October 11, 2018.

An assessment method in the form of accessibility testing was used to prepare this Statement.

Accessibility testing was conducted by advanced information technology users with various disabilities.

Tests were performed on the following operating systems, web browsers, and mobile devices: MS Win10, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, iPhone XS iOS Safari. Assistive technologies used during testing: NVDA (NonVisual Desktop Access) 2019 screen reader, JAWS 2019 screen reader, VoiceOver, on-screen keyboard.

Feedback and contact information

Customers can direct all inquiries regarding the accessibility of the CARNET website to the Helpdesk.

You can contact CARNET Helpdesk by:

• email helpdesk@carnet.hr
• phone: +385 1 6661 555
• fax: +385 1 6661 630
• mail: CARNET Helpdesk, Josipa Marohnića 5, 10000 Zagreb.

CARNET Helpdesk operating hours are Monday through Sunday, 8 AM to 8 PM.

CARNET will respond to the user's inquiry, notification, or request regarding accessibility within 15 days of receiving the notification or request, or within the same period to inform the user of a subsequent deadline for the response, with a detailed explanation of the reasons for postponement. Under standard Helpdesk operating circumstances, CARNET will endeavor to process replies to inquiries within two business days.

Inspection control

The Information Commissioner of the Republic of Croatia is the body responsible for monitoring the compliance of websites and programming solutions for mobile devices of public sector bodies with accessibility requirements, and for supervising the implementation of the Accessibility Act.

In case of unsatisfactory replies to the notification or request for feedback on the accessibility of this website, users can contact the Information Commissioner by email: pristupacnost@pristupinfo.hr.

In order to provide information to public sector bodies on how to ensure digital accessibility, the Information Commissioner also opened an Information line for digital accessibility at +385 1 2009 120, available every Wednesday and Friday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.