Ministry reiterates support to people with disabilities

Qatar National Commission for Education, Culture and Science underlined that the Ministry of Education and Higher Education works hard to support the educational approach to integrate people with disabilities in all stages of education, through qualified personnel, educational and psychological programmes, out of its belief of the right of every child residing in Qatar to education regardless of gender, capacity, disability, health, social status or psychological needs.Addressing the opening session of a training workshop on the policy of inclusive education and equal opportunities in Qatar, Director-General of Qatar National Commission for Education, Culture and Science Dr Hamda Hassan al-Sulaiti highlighted the attention paid by organisers of the workshop to the people with disabilities in Qatar, starting from the discovery of disability, the due diligence and the right means, all the ways to developing the abilities of the disabled, launching their energies, and helping them rely on themselves, achieve success in the educational and academic path and engage in community programmes.The workshop is organised by Qatar National Commission for Education, Culture and Science in co-operation with the Unesco regional office in Doha, within the context of the Sustainable Development Goal 4: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.Dr al-Sulaiti said people with disabilities face multiple challenges physically, and in terms of interaction and communication between themselves and members of the society, noting that this is highlighted in all sectors at different levels of society, making it important and necessary to have a human rights-based approach to deal with disability in various sectors.She stressed that every disabled child has the right to attend the formal education system at all levels, without distinction of any kind, and to work to remove all physical, administrative and cultural barriers to the exercise of this right or the integration of the disabled with peers in the classroom.For her part, Director of the Unesco Regional Office in Doha Anna Paolini said that education is a right and must be enjoyed by all members of society on a fundamental long-term basis.She underlined that the goals of sustainable development call for good and equitable education for all and opportunities for lifelong learning by 2030, emphasising inclusion and equity as the basis for good teaching and learning.She highlighted the importance of university education and the continued learning for their importance in ensuring the learning of the principles and the overall development of the human personality, considering the right to education as a fundamental concept that must be achieved in practice.The workshop aims at bringing those interested in achieving the Sustainable Development Fourth Goal and the inclusive education at the local level in order to discuss its effect on policies and strategies, thus providing a suitable environment for inclusive education in the State of Qatar.