Friday 19 / April / 2024
Muscat: An initiative established by Omani youth demanding disabled people have access rights in the town of Adam has been recognised as one of the best ten volunteer initiatives in the Middle East.
At the Youth Initiative Award event, held in Kuwait, the initiative, called “Adam Without Barriers. Adam is a fair city”, established by a volunteer team ‘For You Adam’ was honoured.
The team aims to make Adam — a town in Al Dakhiliyah region — free from barriers so that handicapped people can reach all destinations.
“We were honoured as the fourth best initiative in the Middle East, and that made us so proud, especially because we were competing with 640 different initiatives from the Middle East,” said Ali bin Musabah Al Musalami, a member of the “For You Adam” volunteer team.
He added, “What I personally think made us win, is the way we presented our idea. I acted as if I wasn’t able to walk, while sitting in a wheelchair, and trying to get up to the stage to present my idea, but I could not because they only offered stairs. None of that was true, but I was just making a point.”
He noted, “It all started when I noticed that the disabled people in Adam can’t use some of the most important public facilities, and the infrastructure is unprepared for them.”
“Our initiative started in 2015 and it still going on. The responses were positive, but not enough. We aspire to achieve more,” he said.
Al Musalami said that a number of local mosques, shops, sport clubs and even some homes in Adam responded to the initiative, providing stairs and ramps for people with disabilities.
“The responses we are now aspiring to achieve are from the higher authorities, so Oman can have laws to protect people with disabilities, and provide them with everything they need so they can enjoy a normal life, like everyone else in the Sultanate,” said Al Musalami.
