Muscat: A 5-day cultural forum organised by Al Noor Association for the Blind kicked off on Sunday at Azzan Bin Qais International School in Muscat, with participants from14 Arab countries.
The opening ceremony of the forum was held under the auspices of Salim Mohammed Al Mahrouqi, Minister of Heritage and Tourism, and attended by representatives of government departments and private establishments that lend support to the visually impaired segment of society.
The first day of the forum included a panel discussion about the culture of Omani visually-impaired persons throughout history. Two working papers were presented during the discussion panel. The first dealt with models in history of Omanis who were visually-impaired but intellectually-gifted. The second working paper explored the experiences of blind poets over the Omani literary history.
The forum includes Arabic musical evenings that will see performances by bands from Egypt and Morocco, including musical performances by blind musicians from the participating countries.
The forum provides an opportunity to learn about the cultural and artistic experiences of visually-impaired Arabs and highlight examples of their excellence.