Business & Money | Tuesday 14 March, 2017 12:32 pm |

Qatar Assistive Technology Center (Mada) recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Digital Incubation Center (DIC) at this year’s QITCOM 2017 event. This partnership will help see Mada further develop its Innovation Program with the help of DIC’s two and a half year business incubation program for entrepreneurs with Assistive Technology ideas. Mada is committed to supporting PWD in Qatar and providing them with the latest in Assistive Technologies to ensure they stay connected to a world with ever changing technologies.

This important partnership with the DIC will see the center forward potential applicants with Assistive Technology solutions to Mada, who will then further evaluate their ideas and see if they would be feasible for PWD in Qatar. The chosen applicants will then be provided with an advanced business incubation program on behalf of the DIC for successful entrepreneurs with Assistive Technology solutions. The two and a half year program will include a Launchpad and Start-Up Track sessions, to help further develop these specific ideas.

During this partnership Mada will provide further mentorship and other Assistive Technology related tools and resources to assist the development of these solutions during the program cycle. The non-profit organization will also provide support in the form of structured training to help complement the solution being developed by the entrepreneur. This will consist of structured training on how to interact with Persons with Disabilities to ensure that the developed technologies are successfully incorporated with the end users.

Throughout this whole process Mada will have a lot of influence on the development and evaluate the readiness of the solution through professional reviews and user testing before the solution is released.

Maha Al Mansouri, CEO of Mada said: “We are very honored to be partnering with the DIC to further develop our Innovation Program and bring new and exciting localized Assistive Technology for PWD in Qatar. Our main focus is on Growing Arabic Assistive Technology and Nurturing Accessibility and this partnership is a big step for the future of Assistive Technology in Qatar. The DIC will provide entrepreneurs with prospective solutions and an ideal program to grow their ideas to a reality. We are looking forward to working with the DIC and learning from their talents and experience in technology.”

MOTC’s Assistant Undersecretary for Digital Society Development, Ms. Reem Al-Mansoori said : “Partnering with Mada is a great opportunity to further develop Assistive Technologies in Qatar. We are very pleased to be working with such a committed and knowledgeable non-profit organization and we look forward to working with them to develop new technologies that are going to enhance the lives of PWD across Qatar.”

Mada’s Innovation Program encourages entrepreneurs in the region to create localized assistive technology solutions for persons with disabilities, and motivates innovators to enhance its presence within the region. The non-profit organization will be taking part in a number of events in Qatar and will demonstrate its Innovation Program at these events to spread awareness and encourage developers in Qatar to support Assistive Technology.