Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El Sisi attended on Sunday the “Able to differ” celebration dedicated to children with special needs at Al Manara International Conference Centre in New Cairo.
The ceremony began with recitation of verses of Holy Qur’an by child Ahmed Tamer whom the President had spoken to in a television interview run by journalist Sherif Amer.
Impressed by his memorisation of the entire holy Qur’an at this young age, the President invited the child to recite verses of Qur’an at the first official celebration to come.
The ceremony coincides with the International Day of Disabled Persons which the UN has been celebrating since 1992 to drum up support for this segment of society to ensure their rights and raise public awareness on the importance of merging them into political, economic and cultural life.
Inas El Gebali, an athletic and weightlifting star and the first female of short stature to become a weightlifter, welcomed President Sisi saying “Despite the tough circumstances overwhelming the whole world due to coronavirus, we are still strong as Egypt has carried out several projects and our dreams are being crystallised.”
The attendees watched a documentary film under the title of “Able to differ” on the activities of the people with special needs and their co-operation with each other to counter fear and defeat challenges.
The film shed light on the president’s interest in supporting the persons with special needs who have their impact on the society . It also showed how the development of their skills opened the road for defeating all despair and inspiring hope for all of them.
The film also covered the “new republic” efforts which are being implemented with a societal consolidation to guarantee “decent life” to all Egyptians, noting that the state does not only give special care to special needs people but considers it as a basic human right.
Madonna Gamal, an anchor of special needs and a students in the Theatrical Arts Insititute, performed a show under the name of “Dream Ambassadors” along with actor Mostafa Shaaban.
Addressing the ceremony, Abdel Rahman, one of the children with special needs, said after he took part in the last year’s ceremony of “Able to Differ” the society has perceived him differently and he has made more friends and participated in conferences and forums topped by “Society without barriers” that was held at the Arab nation’s level.
He said he hopes to become an anchor and to interview President Sisi.
