Exhibition of Empowering Persons with Disabilities through Entrepreneurship inspires many people

By Dinda Aisyah and Syamsuar Dafinanza

Gombak, 3 January 2024: The Exhibition on Empowering Persons with Disabilities through Entrepreneurship was a special event that was dedicated to create awareness of Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) and their role in entrepreneurship.

It took place at the Human Sciences (HS) Square of IIUM Gombak, today. Students taking the course COMM 3560: Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) orchestrated the successful event.

The exhibition had booths, that showcased various products from eight organisations that are related to PwDs such as Autism Cafe Project, The Association of Blind Muslims Malaysia (PERTIS), Persatuan Kebajikan Ahsana, Pertubuhan Pemulihan Dalam Komuniti (PDK) Kamii Gombak Setia, Dyslexia Cafe, Rasa Damai Wellness, Akademi Remaja Islam Autisma (ARISMA), and K-Link Care Centre. The event also featured engaging games, charity product sales, and inspiring sharing sessions. These not only highlighted the purpose of depicting that PwDs can also be trained on skills related to entrepreneurship and be employed to work in buisnesses by entrepreneurs but also educated visitors about PwDs in entrepreneurship.

The Program Manager, Sr. Atirah Amirah Tee, opened the event with a welcoming speech. She highlighted the event as a platform for the inclusivity and empowerment of PwDs.

“I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the students of COMM3560, the collaborating organisations, and most importantly, the amazing persons with disabilities who are the heart and soul of this event,” she mentioned.

Warm greetings were delivered by the exhibition’s Advisor and lecturer of COMM3560: IMC, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Aida Mokhtar. She praised and thanked all of her IMC students for their hard work up to the day of the exhibition. She also thanked the clients who took part in the exhibition.

This was followed by the Officiating of the Opening speech by IIUM Deputy Rector (Student Development and Community Engagement), Prof. Dr. Akmal Khuzairy bin Abdul Rahman, who also cut the ribbon to officiate the Exhibition of Empowering Persons with Disabilities through Entrpreneurship. “We hope that we can have further exhibitions like this and also write a book about persons with disabilities so that we can help them and make more people aware of their needs.” Prof. Dr. Akmal informed the audiences.

During the first sharing session, Founder of Autism Cafe Project, Mr. Adli Yahya, shared his challenging yet grateful journey raising a son with autism. The Autism Cafe Project now has over 15.000 Instagram followers. At its booth were handicrafts and food made by young people with autism who were working at the Autism Cafe Project.

The second sharing session was by PERTIS that showcased Al-Quran in Braille, featuring Ustaz Muhamad Firdaus Hairi who read a few verses of Surah Al-Baqarah from ir. At their booth, visitors had the chance to use a Braille printer.

The booth for Dyslexia Cafe that was represented by IMC students, led by Muhammad Irfan Safwan Bin Anton, that showcased interactive games for visitors to get them to empathise with people who have dyslexia. The cafe was opened by Amer Adham Kamaruddin in 2022. Amer has dyslexia but this did not stop him from being successful at a young age as he established the cafe when he was only 21 years old. The cafe offers pastries and Western food on its menu. It also engages in charitable activities every Friday night at Chow Kit.

Moreover, encouraging responses led to significant product sales for the Rasa Damai Wellness booth that was selling keropok and marshmallows. The organisation offers services like reflexology and sauna that is fully operated by blind individuals, in a Shariah-compliant manner in Kuantan, Pahang according to IMC student, Siti Aisyah Husna Maziffar.

Another IMC student, Syed Hussein Avicenna Bin Syed Mohamad Fuaad, said that his client, K-Linik Care Centre, taught living skills to children and adults with disabilities. The PwDs made cookies that were sold at the booth as well as preloved clothes. The centre also offers laundry services at Taman Sri Gombak where it is based.

The academy called ARISMA exceeded sales targets during the exhibition by offering their handmade products and many kinds of snacks and beverages. It specialises in caring for youths with autism and equipping them survival skills, mentioned IMC group leader, Imad Hassan Basri Abdul Halim.

Muammar Hadi Marzuki, one of the IMC students in charge of PDK Kamii, explained that they sold many handicraft materials, potted plants and muruku that were all produced and grown by “trainers” (PwDs). Profits from these sales were reinvested to support the community with disabilities at the centre.

Lastly, the AHSANA booth, it sold paintings that were made by special individuals with different disabilities such as autism and others. Like other booths, they succeeded to sell their products to visitors.

The exhibition was opened from 8.30am to 5.00pm and was co-organised by the Communciation Students’ Association (COSA) and Support Association for Parents of Special Needs Children (SUPPORT) which was recently established by IIUM staff members who have children with disabilities.***

(This article was written as part of an individual assignment for Integrated Marketing Communication, COMM 3560 class)