On March 11, 2023, the "Fərqli Fərdlər" Congress for People with Special Needs will be held at the Heydar Aliyev Center. The congress, which has become a tradition, is celebrating its 5th anniversary this year. Developing over a period of five years, the topics on the agenda of the congress expand to include not only children with special needs, but also adults.

"Fərqli Fərdlər" since 2019 to maximize public attention on autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, cerebral palsy (CP), down syndrome and other topics and to expand the inclusive society defined by the state by establishing a dialogue between parents, specialists and educators supports the trend. The main goal of the Congress and the most important goal that it tries to achieve is to increase public awareness about people who need different care, and most importantly, to bring them into society with the right approach to these people and to help them find their place in society.

Well-known local and leading international speakers from the USA, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Israel, Russia, Turkiye and other countries will speak in order to discuss a wide range of topics related to "Fərqli Fərdlər" 2023, exchange ideas and share experience. The platform serves as an excellent tool for building connections between local and foreign speakers. Among the moderators of the congress will be parents of children with special needs and people with special needs themselves.

The producer of the Fərqli Fərdlər congress is the head of the support center for people with Asperger's syndrome and autism, a person with ASD, Antonina Steinberg. The noteworthy point is that children with special needs will also work in "Fərqli Fərdlər" congress.

At the opening ceremony of the congress, people's artist Alim Gasimov and honored artist Fargana Gasimova will perform the anthem "Fərqli Fərdlər" specially written for the project. As always, this time the "Ümid var" Creative Group will add color to the event with their participation. Thus, children with special needs will perform at the event with inclusive compositions.

This year's program of the Congress includes 3 sections and a panel discussion:

·         Section I: From the beginning

·         Section II: School time

·         Section III: We grow together

·         Panel discussion: Accompanying recruitment

Traditionally, the themes of "Fərqli Fərdlər" are formed by the organisers taking into account the modern requirements, as well as the requests of the participants. For the first time, sexual education in adolescence, which is a very relevant but sensitive topic, will be discussed at the event. During the congress, childhood research and early intervention of people with special needs, eating disorders in autistic people, "bullying" and school integration, inclusive employment, perspectives and other topics will be raised. It should be noted that experts speaking on these topics are currently implementing their own programs for inclusion in Azerbaijani schools.

At the event, sunflower necklaces for people with special needs will be provided by the partner - "ZAMA LLC". As you know, the sunflower is the international symbol of a seemingly invisible disability. In this way, the participants of "Fərqli Fərdlər" will be able to see the hidden disability of the wearer of the necklace and they will understand that they may need more time for orientation, decision-making or additional assistance. A separate line will be organised to provide comfortable conditions and food for the owners of sunflower necklaces. In addition, the hall will have a special rest room for children and adults.

This year, the event is organised with the support of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of Azerbaijan, the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, the Heydar Aliyev Center, The State Agency on Mandatory Health Insurance, The Administration of the Regional Medical Divisions (TABIB), the Small and Medium Business Development Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (KOBIA), the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Comissioner for Human Rights of the Republic of Azerbaijan (OMBUDSMAN), the “Regional Development” Public Union, Agency for Sustainable and Operational Social Security (DOST Agency), Social Services Agency, the DOST Center for Inclusive Development and Creativity, the State Medical-Social Expertise and Rehabilitation Agency and the State Agency for Advertisement of The Republic of Azerbaijan (ADRA).

The silver sponsor of the "Fərqli Fərdlər" congress is the PMD Group company. The session sponsor is GrowGroup Azerbaijan, and the registration sponsor is Gubre.az. The event was also supported by "AzExpoMontage", "ZAMA LLC", "Credo Group", "Black & Black Studio", "BakPro LLC", "Art-Trio" Creative Studio, "Pro Media Group", "Konfrans Services", “Yaman Group”, “Indigo Printhouse”, “Bağçam” network of kindergartens, “Avto FM 107.7”, “Space FM 104”, “Baku Retro FM”, “Baku Hit FM”, “Highlight” and "Propaganda Agency” companies. The organiser of the congress is "Caspian Event Organisers" (ceo.az).

Note that it is necessary to register to participate in the "Fərqli Fərdlər" 2023 Congress: https://ferqliferdler.az/en-register/.

To act as a partner or sponsor at the event, you can contact congress@ceo.az by e-mail.

The activities of the congress can be followed on the official website of "Fərqli Fərdlər" (www.fergliferdler.az), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/fergliferdlercongress) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/ferqliferdler/).

During its existence, the "Fərqli Fərdlər" congress achieved significant results thanks to the support of state institutions and sponsors. Thus, in recent years, the attitude and care towards people who need special care has been developing on a positive trend. Currently, the number of centers and specialists providing assistance to this group of children and adults is constantly increasing. They are already involved in various associations and discover their talents in sports, music and other fields and achieve success. In addition, various trainings are held to inform parents and relatives of people with special care needs, they are introduced to various instructional tools. It is gratifying that people with special needs are already employed in a number of government institutions and companies and continue their professional activities. It is thanks to the increase in awareness in the society that the fear of communicating with people in need of special care in the society disappears.

The results of the “Fərqli Fərdlər” congress over the years of its existence, which became possible thanks to the support of government agencies and sponsors:

1. The organisers of the congress took the initiative to implement a program to create an accessible environment for special people at the Heydar Aliyev International Airport in Baku. The airport management supported and implemented this program. Baku Airport is one of the best airports in the world, as evidenced by numerous international certificates. Now there is also a service for people with so-called invisible disabilities: autism, dementia, Alzheimer's disease, thanks to which flights have become more comfortable and less stressful for passengers with special needs. Lanyards with a yellow sunflower pattern, which is an international symbol of hidden disability, were introduced.

2. On the initiative and sponsorship of the company "CEO" the book by Tony Attwood "The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome" is being translated into several languages. The book will also be translated into sign language for people with hearing impairments. The entire team working on the project of translation and publication of the book are people with special needs. So, people in the spectrum Antonina Steinberg and Alexey Voskov were engaged in translation. The proofreader is Vera Zhibul, a philologist, majoring in Russian language and literature, candidate of philological sciences, mother of a boy diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome. The author of the cover of the book is Aisha Mammadli, a girl with ASD. The book is currently being prepared for publication.

3. During the “Fərqli Fərdlər” Congress, more than 300 people were diagnosed. Participants received free consultations from international experts, relatives of special people shared their experiences and watched their performances. Foreign speakers continue to work closely with local experts after the event. In addition, “Fərqli Fərdlər” congress gave impetus to the development of a special educational program.

4. The congress led to the implementation of new creative projects: with the participation of a children's theater group, an excerpt from the children's performance "Time Machine" based on the scenario of a girl with ASD was shown.

5. There is a special Club to support parents of children with autism. Members of the club gather every month for various discussions regarding the upbringing, education and future of children, as well as providing each other with mutual support.