Pressure for tech apps to be bilingual

THE slower development of Welsh language apps and other IT technology is one of the biggest challenges facing Gwynedd Council in providing a fully bilingual service online.

The publication of an annual report has confirmed that Gwynedd Council is going beyond the basic requirements of the Welsh Government implemented language standards across the organisation, as well as promoting wider use of Cymraeg both locally and beyond.

Thanks to several years of setting language requirements when recruiting and offering training to improve the skills of its existing workforce, the vast majority of council staff are able to speak Welsh, normalising its day to day use while being the main internal language of administration.

It found that during 2019/20, good progress is being made including a new procedure to monitoring language impact statements within planning applications.

But the report also found that while the authority is making significant progress in the use of the Welsh language in online services - hastened by Covid-19 making most face to face interaction impossible - the barrier of a lack of some software being available in Welsh as well as English means that efforts are underway to persuade international software companies.

This includes allowing simultaneous translation so that virtual meetings can be conducted entirely bilingually.

The report noted there was a need for “consistent effort” in pushing external companies of the need to develop bilingual apps from the get-go, “rather than having to adapt the app further down the line.”

This is said to be a “continual challenge” when the council’s own websites need to link to external websites, such as on-line payment services, ensuring that everything is available through the medium of Welsh.