Al Eman Rehabilitation Center holds sporting event for disabled children

Students participating in games at the Al Eman Center.

Located in Sanaa, the Al Eman Rehabilitation Center is a school for disabled children whose challenges fall into several categories including cerebral palsy, deafness, mental retardation, and autism. The mission of the school is to give them new opportunities to make their lives more interesting and independent. They learn the basics of education related to their cognitive age as well as trade skills such as weaving and gardening.

Since December these children have taken part in a new program of physical education. In it, they learn to work together, communicate, and develop cognitive and motor skills. These lessons were started up by Toine Klerks, an intern from the University of Sports in Holland, who specializes in sports for disabled children and was invited on a 5 month internship by Miriam van Campen, a Dutch physiotherapist. 

This past week, over 120 children with mental disabilities joined together for a special day on the 19th of March for their own sporting event. One week before the event, the Al Eman institute started a cooperative project with the Sana’a International School (SIS) to involve their students in the lives of the disabled at the Al Eman school. Volunteers consisted of eight students aged 12-14 who followed lessons and volunteered in workshops of weaving, gardening, physiotherapy, and physical education for five days. The week of training ended with the final sporting event.

All the disabled children were transported by buses to SIS, the location of the sporting event, and they walked into the arena with the flags of the country they represented. They were welcomed by applause from almost 20 international volunteers. The entire morning was spent playing several fun games set up by the volunteers and was presided over by Toine Klerks. After refreshments they finished their games and came together in the sporting area for a final group picture and to receive their certificates.

Volunteers and workers say that the event was a huge success and they hope to hold future events such as this one promoting partnership between students and providing new opportunities for disabled children in Yemen

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