The Special Olympics, an international athletic competition for the handicapped, has chosen Egypt for its Middle East and North Africa (MENA) headquarters, reported Egypt Online.
The announcement came during the first conference on “Preparing Leaders to Care for Disabled Children,” said the news service.
Addressing the inaugural session, Egypt’s first lady, Suzanne Mubarak, said the “convocation of the conference comes as part of Egypt’s policy to provide integrated care for all children in Egypt without any discrimination."
"The idea of the Special Olympics is a turning point in dealing with the disabled and making them participate in the different activities of society," the first lady added.
Ismail Othman, the head of Egypt’s Special Olympics and leader of the Regional Council of the International Special Olympics for the Middle East and Africa, told the conference that the regional Olympics Council comprises 24 states and works for the sake of realizing sport, health and social integration for the disabled.
He called on the first ladies of the 24 member states to back the Special Olympics, “taking Mrs. Mubarak as an example.”
Ministers of education, social Affairs, and the environment, as well as the spouses of ministers and governors attended the two-day conference held in Cairo – Albawaba.com
