25 July 2014 – In line with the 150th birth anniversary of Apolinario Mabini and the 36th Annual National Disability Prevention and Rehabilitation (NDPR) Week, the Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi, led by the Philippine Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates Grace Relucio Princesa organized a lecture entitled “Collaboration towards Enablement of Individuals with Different Abilities”. More than 50 participants from the Embassy and the Filipino community in Abu Dhabi attended the event.
The program began with an audiovisual presentation of Mabini@150 by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines. This was followed by the lecture proper delivered by Ms. Veronica A. Pedralvez, Head of Training and Organizational Development and Community Engagement Officer from the Future Centre for Special Needs. The lecture provided general information on disabilities, services provided by the Future Centre for Special Needs, and ways on how to enable persons with special needs. Several clips of success stories involving differently abled individuals were also shown to inspire the audience.
After the lecture, “The True Decalogue” of Apolinario Mabini were recited by the officers from the Embassy and from the attached agencies Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO), Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Social Security System (SSS) and PagIBIG to honor Mabini’s memory. A simple salo-salo capped the afternoon event.
The Future Centre for Special Needs is a non-profit organization founded in September 2000 and is recognized by the UAE Ministry of Social Affairs. It is a centre dedicated to the empowerment of individuals with disabilities, employing a systematic, structured and balanced approach aimed at improving the quality of life of its students. END