Colour Festival strives for excellence among disabled people

SALALAH – At a time when the whole world is battling with the Covid-19 pandemic, a section of groups is not shying away from the responsibility of working for those who need extra care. People with disabilities saw their representation at the second edition of the International Colour Festival in which the Sultanate also took part remotely. The theme of this edition’s festival is ‘Excellence’ that befits with the idea of empowering the people with special needs with skills in their respective areas to make them able to manage day-to-day needs and highlight inherent skills that every special need person is gifted with. “This year the event host is Qatar, a joint effort of the Doha International Center for Special Needs, the Regional Network of Social Responsibility, the Bevol International Volunteer Platform, the Qatar Unified Awareness Team and the Arab Creators Forum in Turkey. This is the first virtual exhibition of ‘excellent’ works of people with special needs,” said Mohammed al Sahri of Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI), Salalah. Several specialists, consultants, and researchers from across the Arab countries took part in the festival that focussed on sign language, translation, the mathematics of people with disabilities, their experiences, and tools. “All these areas need a constant upgrade for people with disabilities and their development. It is meant also for media personnel working in this field.” “Some participants from the Sultanate shared personal experiences and challenges of living with a disability. They called for self -motivation to achieve their goals and not to give in to disability. They made points for using the disability an agent of catalyst to achieve desired goals,” said Al Sahri. The event comprised competitions supervised by a group of artists and specialists in the field of disability. A special committee chaired by DrHala Al Saeed, owner, and director of the Doha International Center for Special Needs, gave valuable suggestions to help improve the status of the disabled people and set new goals for the upcoming events.