David Banes, CEO of the Mada Centre addressing the media along with other officials of Mada.

By Joseph Varghese/Staff Reporter


Mada, Qatar Assistive Technology Centre, launched yesterday a portal to meet the needs of the people with disabilities. It is the first of its kind in the world and contains detailed information on a wide range of technologies.
The details of the new assistive technology portal, www.madaportal.com were given during a press conference at the headquarters of the Ministry of Communication Technology yesterday. David Banes, CEO of Mada, Maha al-Mansoori, deputy CEO of Mada and Ahmed Habib , head of communications, were present on the occasion.
Speaking to Gulf Times, CEO Banes, said that the new portal is an online library. “The portal contains huge amount of content. It is independent valid information that is the basis of knowledge-based society. The information will enable people with disabilities to make decisions,” he said.
Banes said that the portal will can be accessed anywhere from the Arab region and it is free of cost. He said: “It is fully accessible and has a range of materials from videos to tapes to pictures and a variety of other materials both in English and Arabic.”
The official disclosed that Mada trained over 300 professionals this year. He stated: “These professionals include teachers, physiotherapists, web designers and others. In addition, around 200-300 people with disabilities are getting trained in the centre every year. Depending on their needs they come here and make use of the facilities and technologies.”
The CEO also observed that the portal will contribute largely to the progress of the nation into a knowledge-based country. “The portal that has different products and information will be extended and expanded in due course. It will lead to the social and digital inclusion of every segment of the society,” he added.
Maha al-Mansoori, deputy CEO of Mada, said: “Creating a dynamic repository of information in the Arabic language with so much detail is a tremendous resource for people with disabilities, parents, caregivers and professionals who are committed to using ICT as a means of improving quality of life and creating better opportunities in the areas of education and employment in Qatar and beyond.”   
The portal was developed entirely in-house by Mada team and comes as part of a process of providing information resources about assistive technology. The portal contains a wide range of technologies that connect people with learning, physical, visual and hearing disabilities to the world of ICT. The portal has been built according to the guidelines of the World Accessibility Initiative (WAI).