At an international and national governance level, as well as within the corporate sector, Qatar champions the WAAD initiative to spread awareness about autism.
April 2 marked World Autism Awareness Day (WAAD), an annual event initiated by the United Nations General Assembly resolution A/RES/62/139 in 2007.
Given the lifelong nature of the condition, its prevalence among children in all regions and challenges to communicative, social and behavioural abilities, the assembly encourages all member states to take necessary steps each year to raise awareness throughout society.
Advocating for awareness and spearheading campaigns about autism is of great importance to the state of Qatar.
In New York, Qatar’s Permanent Mission to the UN in collaboration with Autism Speaks held the ‘Leave No One Behind: Autism, Emerging Technologies, and Equity’ event.
Chaired by the nation’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Sheikha Alya Ahmed Al Thani, the discussion delved into the growing digital divide whereby autistic individuals are not benefitting from the advances in new digital technologies in comparison to the general population.
Sheikha Alya said during her opening address, “This is a very important topic that hopefully, through this important discussion today, we can come up with specific suggestions and follow-up activities that we can build upon through our different spheres of work.”
Representatives from leading organisations lent their support to the event – including Werner Obermeyer, the Executive Director of the World Health Organization Office at the United Nations and Karin Källander, the Unit Chief of Digital Health and Information Systems at UNICEF. Qatari representatives present included Amani Al Tamimi, the Acting Executive Director at Qatar’s Assistive Technology Center, and Dena Al-Thani, an Associate Professor at Hamad Bin Khalifa, among others.
Meanwhile, back in Doha, various government bodies and individuals illuminated the city in blue, contributing to the local efforts to raise awareness about autism.
Breaking barriers to learning
Communication difficulties, challenges processing information accurately and sensory stimuli are just some of the barriers to learning among children with autism.
On the occasion of WAAD, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education’s building was lit blue to symbolise its commitment to implementing inclusive curricula in schools and providing opportunities for the needs of all of Qatar’s students.
This campaign is especially championed by Fatima Al Saadi, the ministry’s Director of the Department of Special Education and Inclusion Education.
As part of the Masary Al Khaas specialised programme, the ministry is especially pushing for the integration of pupils with autism into the nation’s government schools. This drive is aimed at empowering students with disabilities to have the skillset and confidence to positively contribute to Qatar’s labour market in the future.
Championing the rights of people with autism
On Tuesday, the Qatari National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) took part in a web seminar organised by the Oman Human Rights Commission in collaboration with the Asia-Pacific Forum.
To mark WAAD 2024, the digital dialogue was titled ‘Respecting and Upholding the Rights of People with Autism: National Human Rights Institutions Perspective.’
During her address to the webinar, Maryam bint Abdullah Al Attiyah, the Chairperson of the NHRC and Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions, echoed the sentiments of Sheikha Alya – that despite great strides made in technological advancements, many are still unaware of the prevalence of autism worldwide and its challenges.
Al Attiyah called for more robust action to uphold the rights of people with autism, especially in the global south and nations beset by conflict.
Access to support in the besieged Gaza Strip was already a struggle due to Israel’s 15-year blockade, but its renewed onslaught of the enclave has made the situation even worse.
For Gaza’s autistic children, who are highly sensitive to sensory stimuli, the devastating impact of the aggressor’s relentless bombardment is especially profound.
In an interview, one Palestinian mother, Nujoud, detailed how this has badly impacted her autistic son and his brother. “They cannot bear his constant screaming and his nervousness. He hits everything on the ground, his movement is very fast, and we cannot control him,” she said.
Many corporations in Qatar also made efforts to spread autism awareness.
For the Qatari General Electricity and Water Corporation, better known as KAHRAMAA, it was important to raise awareness of the condition among the local community.
Setting their head office building alight with blue, KAHRAMAA added that WAAD positively contributes to correcting the misconceptions that surround autism and educates people on strategies to manage its symptoms.