Fatima Muhammad Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — Ibsar society for visually impaired is seeking to establish a village serving visually impaired individuals in Jeddah. The primary budget the society opts to raise from supporting bodies will approximately be SR350 million. The society has not yet got a land for the project, but it is seeking to take advantage of a government decision to grant 2,500 sq. meters of land to each charity society. The project, said Muhammad Balu, secretary general of Ibsar society, is still being studied. They have finalized the plans and will present them to the board members as well as supporters. “We hope to raise the budget needed for the project and we will ask for an extra space of land and we want it to be located in northern Jeddah,” he added. The project, he said, hopes to provide services to visually impaired individuals regardless of their age. The village is expected to include a nursery, service areas, and will provide training on different handmade crafts for visually impaired people. “In this village we will provide all services that visually impaired individuals lack,” he said. The primary objective is to employ 405 people out of which 100 will be visually impaired. “This number will be increased by 75% within 15 years,” said Balu. Private companies are considering providing support to this project. Abdul Aziz Al-Rajhi Secretary General of the National Prevention of Blindness Committee, said that the project is expected to serve 1,000 visually impaired individuals. Through this village, he said, they will help visually impaired children through early intervention programs. Ibrahim Sharbatly, vice president of the board of the trustees of Hassan Abbas Sharbatly Foundation, applauded the initiative adding that all layers of society should support this humanitarian mission. The initiative, he said, is an attempt to provide sustainable development plans in charity projects.
