Mohammed bin Rashid Library (MBRL) is keen to provide all its facilities with the latest technologies and tools that help integrate people of determination in the public sphere and promote their capabilities, by offering them a unique collection of books and resources that they can both read and listen to as they constitute an integral part of the society, including the visually impaired individuals.
MBRL is making significant efforts to integrate and empower people of determination, most notably by adjusting its building and facilities in accordance with the Dubai Universal Design Code. These efforts include providing wheelchairs at the main entrance, Braille signs on public utilities, audio and visual alarm systems, toilet alarm devices, and evacuation chairs on all floors of the building among others.
More Than 2,000 Braille Books
The Library’s People of Determination Information Centre is a groundbreaking initiative dedicated to supporting and empowering people who are blind and visually impaired. The Centre offers over 2,000 Braille books in Arabic and English, covering literary, historical, and intellectual topics and references. Elsewhere, the Children’s Library houses a unique collection of purposeful stories gifted to MBRL by the Braille Institute in Los Angeles, Zayed Charitable & Humanitarian Foundation, and Dar Ibsar in Jordan.
Within this valuable collection, the Library includes several Arabic Braille titles for His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai, such as Flashes of Thought and the Hope Probe.
Cutting-edge Technology
A set of high-end specialised devices are provided in the Library, which caters to the needs of blind and visually impaired individuals and ensures people of determination enjoy optimal services. The Library also offers several supporting devices to facilitate the knowledge journey for those visitors, including magnifiers, reading devices, and Braille printers.
Moreover, MBRL included Braille language in the cataloging cards across its Information Centre and the Children’s Library, allowing the visually impaired to sense Braille dots and identify the topics of books on the shelves. Thus, all people of determination can enjoy a unique and seamless public library experience.
Workshops & Events
As part of its commitment to support Dubai’s Vision for the inclusion and empowerment of people of determination, MBRL is always keen to host various workshops for improving its employees’ abilities to interact and communicate with people of determination, as part of its long-term strategy to empower staff and develop their skills.
In this context, MBRL organised a workshop for its staff to introduce them to sign language and how it facilitates communication with hearing-impaired people, as well as to learn the basics of sign language, such as the numbers and its Arabic alphabet, along with a practical demonstration of Arabic letters and their corresponding signs. A practical group training between the employees and hearing-impaired people of determination followed this.
Reflecting MBRL’s vision and strategy, the workshop comes as part of the Library’s commitments to social responsibility in terms of supporting and implementing the National Policy for Empowering People of Determination, launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. A nationwide initiative, the policy aims to establish an inclusive society that ensures the empowerment and well-being of all people of determination and their families.
