News Bangladeshi Ambassador receives the first Runa book
World Disability Day is celebrated yearly on the 3rd of December. On this day we promote the full and equal participation of people with disabilities and take action for inclusion in all parts of society and development.
Children with disabilities are often marginalised and excluded from regular society and education. This is the case in the Netherlands and in countries with lower incomes, this is all the more devastating. However, the biggest barrier that disabiled children face are negative attitudes and low expectations of what they can do. Children without a disability are very often unaware of the problems that their peers with a disability experience, due to the fact they seldom meet them. They also do not see and learn about children with disabilities in their school books or reading books. With teachers themselves lacking the proper knowledge about children with disabilities.
This was one reason that Biblionef Nederland and Niketan joined forces and started the project Stories for Inclusion. In this project we fight for more understanding and inclusion by creating stories that focus on children with disabilities. Our first book “My name is Runa” is based on the life of Runa, a young girl in Bangladesh. We take you through her life, her strength, and the challenges she faces on a day to day basis.
The first copy of “My name is Runa” was given to the Bangladeshi Ambassador, Mr. Riaz Hamidullah on World Disability Day. The Ambassador expressed his appreciation for this initiative and emphasised the need for more inclusion of people with disabilities.
