The Shafallah Center for Children with Special Needs is a center of excellence that provides comprehensive
services to individuals with developmental and learning challenges, their families, and the community. Shafallah was established at the behest of Her Highness Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Bin Abdullah Al-Missned, wife of His Highness the Emir of Qatar, to meet the demands of the Qatari society to establish a center that provides comprehensive services to children with special needs. The center is a non-profit, private facility providing diagnosis, evaluation, training, and development services for children with all forms of disabilities aged 3 to 21.

Educational and related services are provided by a highly qualified transdisciplinary team of specialists. Areas
of expertise include special education, rehabilitation, cognitive assessment, social work, child and adolescent
psychiatry, pediatrics, behavior analysis, counseling, music therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech and language pathology.

“Shafallah” is the Arabic name for the exquisite flower of the caper plant, a small shrub native to the
Mediterranean area and bountiful in Qatar. Capers are beautiful pink and white flowers with immature, unopened buds. As with the shafallah flower, the Shafallah Center combines usefulness with the beauty of its special children to encourage their growth and development.

The success of the 2006 and 2007 Shafallah International Forums has helped establish the Center as a world-class facility, and furthered Qatar’s reputation as a global advocate for the rights of children with special needs. These events have helped advance crucial debates from awareness to research, and have convened groups of the most prominent thinkers and practitioners in the world.

The topic of the Third Annual International Forum is sport and ability. Discussions and demonstrations of how sport, recreation, and cultural activities promote global unity, social inclusion, acceptance, skill acquisition, and friendships will take place.

The Forum will explore the current efforts of these programs and future directions for how sport and the promotion of ability can be expanded to reach all members of our society. It will feature keynote addresses by global leaders, roundtable discussions, symposia, paper presentations, and exhibits.

Doha’s luxurious, state-of-the-art City Center Mall has firmly established itself as one of the region’s premiere retail spots. In the heart of downtown Doha, the boutiques carry modern fashion, a mix of furniture and stylish interior design, and traditional Arabian souvenirs and specialties. The jewel of this fabulous shopping experience is arguably its central ice rink, but visitors can also take advantage of the multi-screen cinema, bowling alleys, and numerous restaurants.

With a covered area of 73,000sqm, Aspire Stadium is the largest multi-purpose indoor sports dome in the
world. Designed by the famous French architect Roger Taillibert, the ground-breaking Aspire Stadium opened its doors in November 2005. Part of Sport City, Aspire houses an indoor athletics stadium, a 6,000-seater football stadium, Olympic-sized swimming and diving pools, and seven multi-purpose sports halls. Aspire successfully hosted the Asian Games in 2006.