No fewer than 70 visually impaired persons and 50 children with down syndrome have been given hope to live again by the management of Sifax Group.
Following the move, the company will embark on the training of the physically challenged children in Nigeria’s commercial nerve centre, Lagos.
The initiative is in partnership with two non-governmental organisations (NGOs). They are the Initiative for National Growth and Mo Rainbow Foundation.
In a statement signed by Sifax Group Corporate Affairs Manager, Mr. Muyiwa Akande, it said at the training for the visually-impaired organized by the Initiative for National Growth, topics such as choosing a career in public speaking, mass communication, law and psychology, mobility skills for the blind, legal rights, music therapy and sports skills were discussed in addition to free malaria and HIV tests that were done for both the participants and their caregivers.
According to the statement which was made available to Maritime Bits, the children living with the down syndrome were hosted to a five-day inclusive creative arts training, which was meant to enhance their learning and adaptive skills carried out by the Mo Rainbow Foundation.
The Executive Director, Human Resources and Administration, SIFAX Group, Dr. Fola Rogers-Saliu, noted that the company’s resolve in making society a better place for everybody especially the physically challenged is the main reason for sponsoring the programmes.
Her words: “At SIFAX Group, we take delight in supporting social causes that positively impact and add value to the society. The major beneficiaries of our social interventions are the less privileged – the poor, orphans, widows, physically-challenged children, among others.
“Physically-challenged children are shut out of many opportunities in the country due to their condition. These training were then designed to prepare them for the real world, to equip them with skills that are required to succeed, even in a competitive environment. We believe that the society could gain a whole lot if the abilities and talents of these children are appropriately tapped. That’s why SIFAX Group is backing these initiatives.”
The Coordinator, Initiative for National Growth, Rachael Inegbedion noted that the blind community has been under served especially with training that centres on equipping them with life skills.
“I and my team, after careful deliberations saw that there is a need to equip the blind community with life skills that will make them better people in the society. With this training, we want to stimulate the abilities in them and see them grow to become renowned professionals and experts in the different fields they have been trained today”, she explained.
On her own part, the Creative Director, Mo Rainbow Foundation, Tola Makinde, thanked SIFAX Group for supporting the children living with the down syndrome.
She noted that the children needed a special learning process, adding that creative art was one of the best ways to get the best out of them.
“These children are special and these five days special arts and crafts session exposed the special talents these children possess. They are not useless as some people would think. The reason why we organized this session was to unearth the innate talent they possess. We thank SIFAX Group for this sponsorship and we hope to continue to reach more children living with down syndrome though these special sessions”, she said.
