14. World Down Syndrome Congress Dubai 2021

Virtual Congress, 18-20 Nov, 2021

Under the patronage of HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum Crown Prince Of Dubai Chairman of The Executive Council, Emirates Down Syndrome Association is hosting the World Down Syndrome Congress (WDSC) 2021, which will be held virtually in November 2021. This is the first event of its kind to be held in the Middle East and North Africa. In a global phenomenon, the WDSC will bring together an anticipated 1500 delegates including people with Down syndrome, their families and advocates, experts, specialists and researchers in the field of Down syndrome.

The congress will discuss significant developments and quality research in recent years in key areas of global relevance to people with Down syndrome. Topics of interest will include health, education, employment, sports, recreation and leisure. Focus will be on human rights based issues (in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disability (UNCRPD)) such as ensuring adequate standard of living, social protection, legal recognition, social and cultural inclusion and the right to live an independent life.

The WDSC is a global event organised by Down Syndrome International (DSi) and hosted by DSi National Representative Organisations in different locations around the world.

It gives me a great pleasure to invite you to the World Down Syndrome Congress Dubai 2021, a great event that will bring together experts, parents, professionals, researchers sharing with us the latest trends and issues as well as success stories of people with Down syndrome. Appreciate the great support from our prudent leaders by adopting laws, legislations, National Policies and ambitious initiatives that promote the participation and inclusion in the community and positively engaging for People of Determination in their environments, as capable individuals of society. It is a unique and amazing experience to host this Congress for the first time in the Middle East and North Africa region. We are proud that the choice from DSi was due to recognition of the role played by Emirates Down Syndrome Association (EDSA) and a culmination of its efforts in contribution to the improvement of the quality of lives for people with Down syndrome in the UAE, the most tolerant place on earth whereas more than 200 nationalities living together in peace and harmony. Looking forward to your valuable participation.

As President of DSi and on behalf of our board, staff and members, it is an honour and a great pleasure to invite you to the 14 th World Down Syndrome Congress Dubai 2021 which will be held virtually. This will be the first time the WDSC has been held in the Middle East and the event promises to inform, inspire and influence everyone who attends for years into the future. It has been really encouraging to see the high level of interest in WDSC 2021 from all over the world, when we were in Glasgow for WDSC 2018 and since then through the DSi membership. We urge all of you to register to attend, submit your abstracts and tell your friends and colleagues about this unique gathering of the global Down syndrome community. DSi would like to say a big thank you to Dr Manal Jaroor, everyone at Emirates Down Syndrome Association and the WDSC 2021 organising team for all the hard work you are putting in to organising this substantial international event. We know that through your efforts, we will all participate in a really successful WDSC, which will ultimately improve lives for people with Down syndrome around the world. We would also like to acknowledge and thank the many partners and sponsors for their support. Thank you to all those concerned. We trust everyone who attends will find WDSC 2021 of great benefit and that you will share your experience with as many people as possible. We look forward to your valuable participation.

More information about registration, abstracts exhibition etc.:
https://wdsc2021.org.ae/