KUWAIT: United Nations Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) Rola Dashti said it is necessary for people with special needs to contribute to sustainable development by integrating them in the marketplace, stressing the importance of activating a law that calls for employing three percent of people with special needs in the private sector. Dashti spoke at the end of Doha Conference for Disability and Development which was held under the slogan "so not to leave anyone behind," with more than 1,500 decision makers participating.

Dashti said the conferees addressed the inclusive appointment of the disabled and its importance "due to the need of our societies for the contribution of this group, of which there are 60 million in the Arab World." She added that statistics show that 85 percent of women and 65 percent of men with special needs are unemployed. "People with special needs are important parts of society with a lot of untapped potential," she said, urging states to work hard in order to utilize their capabilities and promote their integration. "This is not achieved by legislations only, rather by implementing the laws," she noted.

By Abdellatif Sharaa