𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗺 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗗𝗮𝘆 (𝗪𝗔𝗔𝗗) 𝟮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗹

Since the United Nations General Assembly designated April 2 as 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗺 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗗𝗮𝘆 (𝗪𝗔𝗔𝗗) in 2007, significant strides have been made toward recognizing the rights and contributions of autistic individuals (United Nations, 2025). This year’s theme, “𝘼𝙙𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙉𝙚𝙪𝙧𝙤𝙙𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙐𝙉 𝙎𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙂𝙤𝙖𝙡𝙨 (𝙎𝘿𝙂𝙨)”, emphasizes the importance of inclusive policies that support autistic individuals in education, employment, healthcare, and urban development.

According to the 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗢𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 (𝗪𝗛𝗢, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯), approximately 𝟭 𝗶𝗻 𝟭𝟬𝟬 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗻 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 is diagnosed with autism. A systematic review by Zeidan et al. (2022) indicates a 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝟭𝟬𝟬 𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟬,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗱𝘂𝗮𝗹𝘀, with variations across regions due to factors such as awareness, service capacity, and diagnostic improvements. Despite progress, autistic individuals continue to face barriers in accessing healthcare, education, and employment opportunities (WHO, 2023).

The 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 𝗪𝗔𝗔𝗗 𝗼𝗯𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲, organized by the 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗡𝗲𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 (𝗜𝗢𝗡) in collaboration with the 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, aims to foster dialogue and collaboration among experts, policymakers, and autistic advocates. Discussions will center on reducing inequalities, promoting accessibility, and creating autism-friendly communities.

𝗔𝘁 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱, 𝗔𝗯𝘂𝗷𝗮, we join the global community 𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙘𝙘𝙚𝙥𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚, 𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙙𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙨. Let’s work together to break barriers and promote a society where 𝙣𝙚𝙪𝙧𝙤𝙙𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙞𝙨 𝙚𝙢𝙗𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙫𝙖𝙡𝙪𝙚𝙙.

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