Cuba and UNICEF collaborate for autistic people´s inclusion

Cuba and UNICEF are working jointly on a project aimed at families and educators who care for autistic people, whose international day is celebrated Saturday.

The Central Institute of Pedagogical Sciences and UNICEF´s Office in Cuba have been developing the “Muéstrales el camino” (Show them the way) initiative, which provides informative materials to experts and relatives and results of research programs by Cuban specialists.

Dr. Imilla Campory and Dr. Yaima Demósthene told Prensa Latina that at this stage, technical brochures and didactic material were published aimed at achieving an understanding of this disorder and knowing these people´s potential.

A particularity of these initiatives is that they consider Cuban culture and reality. In this sense, the creation of a series of pictograms stands out, which is the first of its kind in the country. These are images used as visual support for communication with autistic people.

As a result of this process, the child can be placed in special education for autistic children, remain in general education, or attend combined with other special instruction.

The UN decreed April 2 as World Autism Awareness Day to improve life quality of both children and adults.

This year´s celebration has a motto, A happy Journey through Life. Its purpose is for society to recognize and support autistic people and their families' rights to live a happy life.