Qatar harnessed all avenues to care for persons with disabilities, says minister

HE the Minister of Social Development and Family Maryam bint Ali bin Nasser al-Misnad has said that Qatar has contributed to harnessing all the possible avenues to care for persons with disabilities at the entire regional an international levels. During her chairmanship of the two-day workshop on Disability Classification in the Arab World held in Doha, which is organised by the Ministry of Social Development and Family in co-operation with the Secretariat General of the Arab League, HE al-Misnad stressed on the importance of empowering the persons with disabilities in the Arab world to be part of the community not behind it.However, during the past years, strenuous Arab efforts have been made to empower persons with disabilities in the pursuit of integrating them into the community. "However, the tangible signs that underpin our prognosis in Qatar prompt us to believe that such efforts remained below expectations in the Arab framework due to a major reason embodied in the lack of policies and programmes to support persons with disabilities in the Arab world with a unified classification and accompanying disability, through which we can ensure inclusiveness, that no one is left behind, and that our societies are qualified to bear the responsibility of inclusion, interaction and inclusion."She added that she proclaimed from UN Headquarters in New York the readiness of Qatar to host and organise the 4th Global Disability Summit in 2028 in co-operation with International Disability Alliance, during her chairmanship of Qatar delegation participating in the 15th session of Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.She noted that such step is an integral part of the Arab Entrepreneurship Adventure that will be inaugurated by Jordan by hosting the Third World Summit for Persons with Disabilities in 2025 in partnership with Germany. HE the Minister called for adopting a unified Arab classification based on practical classification components that goes beyond the square determined by the medical standard, and without reducing it, but by combining it with the rest of the standards such as the skill standard, the societal standard, the educational standard."I see from my position that we have today a moral responsibility before it becomes a professional responsibility to lay this desired foundation," she pointed out.HE the Minister noted that as soon as the Arab group managed to overcome the traditional challenges in the classification it delays, it would be in the pioneering global efforts as the first region in the world, as this precedent is recorded in an important global file. She elucidated that less than five months remained ahead of hosting FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 as the first Arab Mondial in the history, reiterating the readiness of Qatar to receive football match fans from persons with disabilities in FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, affirming that in the past few years Qatar has witnessed unprecedented preparations to ensure that tournament becomes more easier for the persons with disabilities in the history of world championships.She added that a number of Mondial stadiums have been equipped with specialised sensory rooms devoted to persons with disabilities that primarily provide perfect atmospheres that best fit children with autism and neuro-behavioural disorders to enjoy the atmosphere of the matches in a safe space equipped with all the advanced tools and devices.The preparations also extend to receiving the masses coming from outside Qatar, where Hamad International Airport hosts a hall named Shafallah Center for Persons with Disabilities that provides its services to spectators with disabilities and autism equipped with the state-of-the-art technology and educational and rehabilitation equipment aimed at providing the best travel experience they deserve.