JEDDAH, 13 July 2007 — A specialized satellite channel for people with special needs will be launched in Riyadh in the first week of September, according to Abdul Rahman Al-Fallaj, media consultant for the new channel.
“The channel will focus on the issues and concerns of people with special needs in the Arab world. It will also address the needs of relatives and friends of special needs,” Al-Fallaj said, adding that the channel, called “Insaniyah” (Humanity), would be telecast through Nilesat.
“The name Insaniyah was selected for the channel considering the fact that Saudi Arabia is well known as a humanitarian Kingdom, as a result of its services for humanity,” Al-Fallaj explained.
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah recently sanctioned five new sports clubs for special needs people in Madinah, Hail, Ahsa, Taif and Abha with annual financial aid of SR500,000 each for the five clubs, which will have modern facilities of world-class standards.
“The idea of launching a specialized channel for people with special needs arose in the minds of some people after they observed the lack of such a channel in the Kingdom,” Al-Fallaj said.
“We started working on the project seven months ago with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Information and some satellite channels. UNICEF has appreciated the channel and offered its moral and material support,” he said.
A nonprofit institution, Insaniyah will telecast a series of informative, awareness and entertaining programs for special needs people. It will also discuss cultural, educational, sports and recreational issues related to the targeted group.
“Toward a Single Society” is the slogan of the channel, which will hold special programs to develop the capabilities and skills of handicapped people, Al-Fallaj said, adding that sign language would be part of all of its programs.
“Insaniyah will be an open forum for people with special needs and a strong voice to express their views,” he said, adding that the channel has appointed a number of handicapped people as reporters, cameramen and studio staff.
Though there are no official statistics about the actual number of disabled people in Saudi Arabia, their number is fairly large.
