Jun 2, 2026 She sat beside her son and said quietly, “Teach me how to log in.” He tried to explain it step by step. Then he explained it again, and with a gentle smile said, “Mom, it’s really simple.”
But what seemed simple to him was not simple for her. The button was too small for her to see clearly, the text was too faint to read, and the page moved before she could find what she was looking for.
The problem was not her ability to learn, it was that the technology had not been designed to be seen through her eyes.
This scene plays out every day across Gulf households and the wider Arab world. Behind it lies a truth many web designers quietly ignore: older adults are not second-tier users. They are an entire generation – with substantial purchasing power and genuine need for digital services – being met by websites that were never designed with them in mind.
Aging Is Not a Disability – But a Bad Website Makes It Feel Like One
As the body ages, it goes through natural changes that affect how people interact with screens. These aren’t illnesses – they’re ordinary physiology that deserves a seat at the design table:
- Vision: After 40, the eye’s lens loses flexibility. Distinguishing similar colors becomes harder, and small text causes genuine strain.
- Hearing: Gradual hearing loss makes audio content and videos without captions near-useless.
- Fine motor control: Reduced precision means small buttons and closely-spaced links become real obstacles.
- Working memory: Complex interfaces with multiple steps and confusing transitions are significantly more taxing than they once were.
- Contrast sensitivity: Screens in varied lighting conditions require higher contrast to ensure comfortable reading.
The irony: none of these challenges belongs exclusively to older adults. Anyone using their phone in bright sunlight, or browsing while tired, lives a milder version of the same experience. Design that works for older users works better for everyone.
An Ordinary Day – Through Different Eyes
Meet Abu Saad, 67, educated and retired, trying to renew his ID through the government’s digital portal. Here’s what his morning looks like:
| Abu Saad’s morning with the e-government portal |
| 8:12 AM – Opens the website. The text is small, the colors bleed together. He holds the phone closer. |
| 8:15 AM – Tries to tap the “Renew ID” link – accidentally hits the adjacent link twice instead. |
| 8:18 AM – An error message appears in light red on a bright background. He can’t read it. |
| 8:21 AM – The session times out without warning. He starts over. |
| 8:26 AM – He closes the phone. He’ll ask his son to help him later. |
Abu Saad didn’t fail. The website failed to accommodate him. That distinction – the locus of failure – is the philosophical shift that should shape every digital experience being built today.
Six Problems That Keep Recurring – Six Fixes Already in Hemam’s Hands
These are the most common ways websites exclude older adults – and what Hemam tools do about each one:
| The Common Problem | What Hemam Tools Do |
| Text too small to read comfortably | Flexible text and interface scaling that adapts to users’ visual needs while maintaining a consistent design and seamless user experience. |
| Low contrast between text and background | Instant contrast enhancement to WCAG standards – readable even in difficult lighting conditions |
| Small, closely-spaced buttons and links | Larger touch targets and visually enhanced links help reduce clicking errors and make interaction easier for users. |
| Constant animations and moving content | One-tap motion stop – relieves visual fatigue and cognitive strain immediately |
| Cluttered interfaces with too many options | Focus Mode hides unnecessary elements and highlights essential content, reducing cognitive load and improving the user experience. |
| Audio and video with no text alternative | Full access support including text and audio descriptions for visual and audio content |
The Economic Opportunity Being Left on the Table
Inclusive design is not only a human act – it’s a smart business decision. Older adults in the Gulf region represent a segment with growing purchasing power and a steadily rising rate of digital engagement.
| 📊 What a website loses when it excludes older adults: |
| A user who leaves without completing a transaction = a service undelivered, a satisfaction unearned |
| Repeated visits ending in frustration = eroded trust and a quietly damaged brand |
| Dependence on a middleman (a son, a staff member) = a hidden cost borne by the institution and the individual |
A Note to Design Teams and Decision-Makers
Building a digitally inclusive experience does not mean creating a separate “simplified version” for older adults – that is, in its own way, still exclusion. It means building a primary website that works for everyone, clearly and comfortably.
“The best design is the one that makes nobody feel it was built especially for them – because it feels like it was built for everyone.”
Hemam makes this achievable with a single line of code added to any website – more than thirty features covering older adults, users with visual impairments, users with learning difficulties, and beyond. No site rebuild required.
Closing
The number that looks manageable today – the older adults quietly leaving your site in frustration – will multiply within a decade. The question is no longer “should we invest in inclusive design?” It’s “how long have we been waiting?”
Every person who opens your website deserves to find what they came for. Regardless of their age, the sharpness of their vision, or the steadiness of their hands.
